China to Raise Bullet Trains' Maximum Speed, Report Says
China will soon start operating the world's fastest trains between Beijing and Shanghai, restoring the 350km/h top speed that was in place before a 2011 train collision.
China will soon start operating the world's fastest train service between Beijing and Shanghai, as it restores the maximum speed of 350 km/h, equivalent to about 217.5 mph, the South China Morning Post's Sarah Zheng reported Aug. 21. Her report said seven pairs of bullet trains named Fuxing, which means rejuvenation, will run that route starting Sept. 21.
Bullet trains in China have their speed capped at 300km/h. A maximum speed of 350km/h was tried, but a train collision in Wenzhou on July 23, 2011, caused the railway authority to reduce that speed, she reported. That collision of two high-speed trains occurred on a viaduct in the suburbs of Wenzhou, causing four cars to fall from the viaduct. A total of 40 people were killed and at least 192 were injured. It was the first fatal crash involving high-speed rail operations in China.
Zheng reported that the Beijing-Shanghai route is one of the country's most popular lines with approximately 600 million passengers per year since it opened in 2011, according to China Railway, the state-owned operator.