Intercity Railway
Inter-city railway, refers to the railway transport system planned and built in densely populated metropolitan areas or urban agglomerations. At present, there are 16 Intercity lines in China. The peed of trains allowed by the track system is 200 km/h and below. The length of intercity railway lines is generally between 50 km and 200 km, and the distance between stations is generally between 10 km and 50 km.
Development of Intercity Railway
In 1997, the ministry of railways of the People’s Republic of China implemented “speed up”. After a total of six times of speedup, a large number of express trains, direct trains began to run. After the sixth speed increase in 2007, the ministry of railways launched the “He Xie” bullet trains, which can reach speeds of more than 200 kilometers per hour. In addition, maglev trains are also part of intercity rail transit. Currently, Shanghai has a maximum speed of 431 kilometers per hour maglev connecting Pudong international airport and Pudong district, and the Shanghai-Hangzhou maglev connecting Shanghai and Hangzhou has been approved. Other intercity express trains are expected to include:
- Direct express train: The train number starts with Z, and the main vehicle is type 25T. Most will be non-stop trains between the two stations, and a few express trains will stop at some stations. Most trains have a top speed of 160km/h; the express train, which runs from Guangzhou east station to Hung Hom station, has a top speed of 140 km/h.
- Express train: The train number starts with T, and only stops at a few big stations. The main vehicle is type 25K and the maximum speed of the express train is 140 km/h.
- Fast train: The train number K, with more stops than express trains. With a maximum speed of 120 km/h, it is mainly 25G passenger car.
- Ordinary trains: The train number consists of four digits and operating distance is different. The maximum speed can also reach 120 km, but due to the number of stops, the journey is usually long.
Main Intercity Railways in China
Beijing-Tianjin Intercity Railway
Beijing–Tianjin intercity high-speed railway is China’s first intercity high-speed railway. After it was opened on August 1, 2008, all the original Beijing-Tianjin high-speed trains at Beijing station was cancelled, replaced by inter-city trains from Beijing south to Tianjin. The journey lasts for 29-31 minutes and has a top speed of 350 km/h. Tickets cost 58 yuan and 69 yuan respectively.
Nanchang-Jiujiang Intercity Railway
The first intercity railway in Jiangxi province, Nanchang–Jiujiang intercity railway was officially started construction on June 28, 2007. Officially opened on September 20, 2010, it has become a major means of transportation for the public since it opened to traffic.
Shanghai-Nanjing Intercity Railway
Shanghai-Nanjing intercity railway is a high-speed railway building a link between Shanghai and Nanjing. Construction began in July 2008 and at 8 am on July 1, 2010, Shanghai Hongqiao railway station and Nanjing railway station set off the first high-speed train at the same time. It is the world’s highest standard, longest mileage and fastest operating inter-city high-speed railway.
Nanjing-Hangzhou Intercity Railway
Nanjing-Hangzhou Intercity Railway is a high-speed railway connecting Nanjing city of Jiangsu province with Hangzhou city of Zhejiang province. It was started construction on December 27, 2008, started trial operation on June 26, 2013, and officially put into operation on July 1, 2013.
Tianjin-Baoding Intercity Railway
Tianjin-Baoding railway connects Tianjin city to Baoding city, Hebei province. The line leads from the high-speed train yard of Tianjin west railway station and goes to Baoding station through Bazhou and Xiongxian counties, Hebei province. The railway has a total length of 157.8km, including 132.9km of newly built lines. It has been officially operated on December 28, 2015.
Liuzhou-Nanning Intercity Railway
Liuzhou-Nanning inter-city railway, located in Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, starts from Liuzhou, an industrial town in the north, and reaches Nanning, the capital of the autonomous region, via Laibin city, with a total length of 226 kilometers. Construction began in December 2007 and the line opened in December 2012. Since July 1, 2018, the line has operated at a top speed of 250 kilometers per hour.
Changchun-Jilin Intercity Railway
This is the first high-speed railway in China to be built in the cold region and also the first high-speed railway line in northeast China, connecting Changchun city and Jilin city. The construction of this intercity railway started in 2007, and it was opened on December 30, 2010, and officially started the passenger service on January 11, 2011.
Wuhan City Circle Intercity Railway
The inter-city railway of Wuhan city circle includes Huangshi city, Ezhou city, Huanggang city, Xiaogan city, Xianning city, Xiantao city, Tianmen city and Qianjiang city, with Wuhan as the central city and Huangshi city as the sub-central city. As of December 1, 2016, four intercity railways have been opened to traffic, and the Wuhan-Xiantao line is expected to open in 2019.
Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan Intercity Railway
Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan Intercity Railway is a railway linking Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan cities in Hunan province. It started construction on June 30, 2010. The south section of Changsha railway station was completed and operated on December 26, 2016. The west section of Changsha railway station opened to traffic on December 26, 2017.
Shenyang-Fushun Intercity Railway
Shenyang–Fushun inter-city railway was started in November 2008, with a total length of 61 kilometers, and opened on July 30, 2009. The project starts from Shenyang station of Shenyang-Dalian railway in the west and ends at Fushun station. There are 18 stations along the way, and the designed speed is 120 kilometers per hour. Shenyang-Fushun intercity railway is the first intercity railway reconstructed from existing railway line.
Qingdao-Rongcheng Intercity Railway
Qingdao-Rongcheng inter-city railway is a high-speed railway connecting Qingdao city and Rongcheng city in Jiaodong peninsula of Shandong province, China. The full length of the main line is 298.842 km.On December 28, 2014, the section from Jimo north to Rongcheng officially opened to traffic, and the whole line was opened to traffic on November 16, 2016.
Zhengzhou-Jiaozuo Intercity Railway
Zhengzhou–Jiaozuo inter-city railway, is the second inter-city railway in Henan province, with a total length of 77 km and a designed speed of 250 km/h. It was started on December 29, 2009 and officially opened on June 26,2015, taking 40 minutes to reach Jiaozuo from Zhengzhou.
Zhengzhou-Kaifeng Intercity Railway
The Zhengzhou-Kaifeng intercity railway is a partially completed intercity railway linking Zhengzhou and Kaifeng in Henan province. The total length is 50.33 km and the designed maximum speed is 200 km/h. The first phase of the project (Zhengzhou East-Songcheng Road) was started on December 29, 2009, and started operation on December 28, 2009.The second phase of the project (Songcheng road – Kaifeng station) was started in September 2016 and is expected to be put into use by the end of 2019.
Guiyang-Kaiyang Intercity Railway
Guiyang-Kaiyang Intercity Railway is an inter-city passenger line from Guiyang City to Kaiyang County, with a total length of 62 kilometers. It was officially opened on May 1, 2015.
Lanzhou-Zhongchuan Intercity Railway
Lanzhou-Zhongchuan intercity railway is located in Lanzhou, Gansu province. It is an intercity railway connecting Lanzhou city with Zhongchuan airport (Lanzhou new district). It is the first section of Lanzhong-Zhangye intercity railway. Construction started in 2012 and opened to traffic in 2015.
Guangzhou-Zhuhai Intercity Railway
The main line of Guangzhou–Zhuhai Intercity Railway connects Guangzhou South Railway Station and Zhuhai Railway Station. It is 116 kilometers long and has been opened to traffic by the end of 2012. Besides, the total length of Zhuhai-Changlong and Changlong-Zhuhai Airport under construction and proposed construction is 34.5 kilometers.
Travel by Intercity Trains
Traveling to two destinations over short distances by Intercity High Speed Trains is a way to save time and money. When you want to visit some scenic spots near the big cities, such as Leshan giant Buddha and Dujiangyan Panda Base near Chengdu, the West Lake near Shanghai, you can select the quick and convenient high-speed train as a traffic way. Below are some suggested travel packages with Intercity High Speed Trains.
2 Days Chengdu and Leshan Tour
6 Days Nanjing Suzhou Hangzhou Shanghai Tour
7 Days Shanghai-Hangzhou and Mount Huangshan Tour
See more China Train Tours.
