Beijing-Shanghai high speed railway: Longest ...

Beijing-Shanghai high speed railway: Longest rail link lays last track
11-15-2010 The last track has been laid for China's high profile railway, which connects Beijing and Shanghai. Costing around 220 billion yuan, the high speed railway will ease massive railway traffic in the region and boost transportation volume.
The last segment of rail track is laid into its precise position, and securely fastened.
Monday morning's ceremony marks the end of the track laying phase of the 1,318-kilometer line, the world's longest high-speed rail link.
Lu Chunfang, Vice Minister of Railways, said, "The completion of the track ensures the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway promotes order and efficiency so the line can open on time. This is a great achievement."
Track laying on the pilot section of the Beijing-Shanghai high speed railway started in July. Each track measuring five hundred meters is being welded together, and checked for further adjustments, both manually, and with computers. The precision is around 0.1 millimeters, a substantial improvement over regular railway tracks.
The Beijing-Shanghai High Speed Railway is being made to the highest standard. And this means it has to adjust to the changing terrains along the line. Bridges are an important section of the railway. The project includes 244 laid bridges, stretching around 1,000 kilometer, which comprises about 80 percent of the railway. Steel trusses are being used to stiffen girders to ensure passengers have a stable journey.
Jing Shiyuan, Engineer of China Railway No. 4 Servey & Design Group, said, "A lot of bridges are located in this section, thus putting more emphasis on the stability of the rails. We have adjusted the foundations of the bridge to support the weight of fast trains. And the tracks are made much longer, and with high quality steel. "
Construction started in 2008.
The High Speed Railway links China's capital Beijing with Shanghai, the country's main economic hub. The journey will take around four hours and reach speeds of up to 380 kilometers per hour. Running through seven Chinese provinces and municipalities, passenger volume is expected to reach 160 million a year. Experts believe that the high speed railway will not only ease traffic flow around Chinese holidays, but also provide greater connection to two major economic zones in China, the Bohai Bay Economic Rim in the north, and Yangtze River Delta to the south. The two region's GDP makes up around 40% of the country's total.
Li Zhiyi, General Manager of BJ-SH High Speed Railways Co., said, "The operation of high-speed railways will substantially increase cargo and passenger transport capacity and promote inter-regional flow of human resources, material goods, capital and information. It will significantly boost the region’s economic development."
After the tracks are laid down, railway workers began the fine tuning phrase, which aims to ensure a smooth and stable ride. Test runs will be launched for sections between stations at Zaozhuang, in Shandong Province and Bengbu, in Anhui Province. The Beijing-Shanghai High Speed Railway is expected to be put into operation by the end of next year.
Reporter Zhang Nini said, "The track laying completion of the Beijing-Shanghai high speed railway marks an important step in China's Railway development.