Rail transport in the People's Republic of China

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This article is on the rail transport in China (including the Qing Dynasty (before 1912) and the Republic of China (1912 to 1949) eras, and in modern times under the People's Republic of China (1949 onwards)). See also rail transport in Hong Kong (1842 onwards) and rail transport in Taiwan (1895 onwards).

The People's Republic of China has one of the largest rail transport networks in the world. With more than 76,000 km of tracks only the United States and Russia have larger networks.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Qing Dynasty era 1.2 Before World War II 1.3 During World War II 1.4 1945-1949 1.5 Post-1949 2 Current 3 Passenger transport 3.1 Cross-border services 3.1.1 Link to Hong Kong 3.1.2 Proposed link to Macau 4 Data 5 High-speed rail 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Qing Dynasty era

The first train rode in China, the Woosung Road (or Woosung Railway), began its service in July 1876, connecting Shanghai and Woosung (now Wusong). This railway was however, built by Jardine's and Matheson without approval from the Qing government. It was purchased by the Qing government and was demolished in October 1877.^[1] Construction of the 189-kilometre railway between Shanghai and Hangchow (now Hangzhou) was completed in 1909^[2], and in 1911, the Kowloon-Canton Railway was completed, connecting the southern city of Canton (now Guangzhou) with Kowloon in the then British crown colony of Hong Kong.

[edit] Before World War II

[edit] During World War II

[edit] 1945-1949

In 1945, just after the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Chinese mainland claimed 27,000 km of rail, and it was estimated about 23,000 km was usable. By 1948, the number of usable kilometers of rail was estimated at only 8000 km due to the Chinese Civil War. The Communists actively sabotaged rail lines to disrupt the ruling Nationalists (Kuomintang), and the Nationalists scavenged lesser used railways in order to repair the most important ones.^[3]

[edit] Post-1949

In 1951, after extensive investment in reconstruction, the Communists, who established the People's Republic of China (PRC) in October 1949, had restored the usable network to about 22,000 km. Most of the early reconstruction (about 11,000 km) was in Manchuria because Soviet and Japanese occupation there reduced the amount of sabotage between the fighting parties allowing for quick repairs.^[3]

On October 14, 1949, the cross-border service on the Kowloon-Canton Railway was suspended as a result of the communist takeover, which was not resumed until April 4, 1979.

[edit] Current

[edit] Passenger transport

Main article: Passenger rail transport in China

See also: image of a high speed train approaching Beijing.

[edit] Cross-border services

Passenger train services are available to destinations in Kazakhstan, North Korea, Mongolia, Russia and Vietnam, as well as Hong Kong, a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC).

[edit] Link to Hong Kong

Train services to Hong Kong terminate at the Hung Hom Station in Kowloon. Within Hong Kong the cross-border services use the tracks of the KCR East Rail. There are three through-train routes, Beijing line (to/from Beijing), Shanghai line (to/from Shanghai) and Guangdong line (to/from Zhaoqing and Guangzhou East).

[edit] Proposed link to Macau

Macau has no railway. Extending the Guangzhu Railway to Cotai through Hengqin Island was proposed. ^[4]

[edit] Data

Total: 76,000 km^[5] (including 5,400 km of provincial "local" rails)
Standard gauge: 68,000 km 1.435-m gauge (18,668 km electrified; 20,250 km double track)
Narrow gauge: 3,600 km 0.750-m gauge local industrial lines (1998 est.)
Dual gauge: 22,640 km (not included in total) (2003)

Currently, mainland China is being served by about twenty principal domestic railway routes.

[edit] High-speed rail

Conventional railways

• Beijing-Tianjin high-speed rail
• Beijing-Shanghai Express Railway

Maglevs

• Shanghai Maglev Train
• Shanghai-Hangzhou Maglev Train

[edit] See also

• List of railways in China
• Transportation in China
• Qingzang railway
• Beijing railway station
• Beijing west railway station
• South Manchuria Railway

[edit] References

1. ^ http://www.hkrs.org.hk/newsletter/thrutrain/tt9809/ewoosung.htm
   http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0026-749X(1973)7%3A4%3C647%3ACPATDO%3E2.0.CO%3B2-W
   Woosung Road on Chinese-language Wikipedia
2. ^ http://mikes.railhistory.railfan.net/r076.html
   Shanghai-Hangchow Railway on Chinese-language Wikipedia
3. ^ ^{a b} Norton S. Ginsburg, Geographical Review, Vol. 41, No. 3 (Jul., 1951), pp. 470-474
4. ^ Macau - Meeting Point: a Legacy for the Future (1999), published by the Comissão Territorial de Macau para es Comemorações does Descobrimentos Portugueses, p.6.
5. ^ PRC Ministry of Railways statistics for 2006 available in Chinese give the figure at 76,000. English language statistics for 2004 state 74,200. Both exclude any ROC-controlled areas (e.g. Taiwan) and include cross-border services to Hong Kong

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Railways in China

• (Chinese) Ministry of Railways
• (English) Chinese Railways
• (English) Shanghai Maglev Transrapid