Trains are Slowing Down

Today's weather: High = 21 Low = 15
Cloudy

It looks like the public opinion has won out, and there are changes being made to the railway system in China. Actually, the former chief of the railway ministry was fired due to corruption charges (yawn) and a new chief has replaced him. This guy appears to be taking seriously what the public has long been saying:

1. The prices on the bullet trains are too expensive, and the regular train servies which duplicate the routes have been unfairly canceled

2. The extremely high speed is unnecessary.

The newspapers are also moving away from the whole "look how fast the trains can go" kind of boastful talk like from a few years ago.

It looks like some really decent changes are being made to the trains, and I for one and super happy with these changes. I think it would be reasonable to see more revitalization of the regular train services, trains going at moderate speeds, and most importantly, more coverage of the train network at reasonable prices so that ordinary people can afford the tickets.

As mentioned in a former post, what's the point in rushing around from city to city when provincial borders matter more than they ever did before, and services like mobile phone, bank account, licensing, household registration, and many others are localized within a particular area.

A trip from one place to another in China has always been a big deal and a lot of work. In my view, these new bullet trains are slowing down to reflect the reality that things don't change overnight in China.

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A HIGH-SPEED train journey between Shanghai and Beijing is expected to take five hours when the service starts in June, compared to the previous estimate of four hours.

Top speed on the route, which was to have been 350 kilometers per hour, will be cut to 300kph, the Ministry of Railways has decided.

There had been public concern over safety at the higher speed although the trains, designed and built in China, broke world speed records during testing.

"It's the right thing to do," said Sun Zhang, a professor with Shanghai Tongji University and a rail expert.

Sun said that the 300kph top speed would be "ideal."

Another expert told the Beijing Daily newspaper that energy consumption increased dramatically for every extra 10kph above 320kph.

Railway Minister Sheng Guangzu told the People's Daily that the slower speed "will offer more safety" and allow for more variation in ticket prices.

Trains on the 1,318-kilometer Shanghai-Beijing journey should see two top speeds in service, 300kph and 250kph, with cheaper prices expected on the slower route.