Photo taken on June 26, 2017 shows the China's new bullet train "Fuxing" at Beijing South Railway Station in Beijing, capital of China. China's next generation bullet train "Fuxing" debuted on the Beijing-Shanghai line June 26, 2017. A CR400AF model departed Beijing South Railway Station at 11:05 a.m. for Shanghai. At the same time, the CR400BF model left Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station for Beijing. The new bullet trains, also known as electric multiple units (EMU), boast top speeds of 400 kilometers an hour and a consistent speed of 350 kilometers an hour. (Xinhua/Ju Huanzong)
BEIJING, Jan. 2 (Xinhua) -- China's high-speed rail tracks will hit 38,000 km by 2025, higher than 25,000 km registered by the end of 2017, the railway operator said.
The country's operating high-speed rail tracks accounted for 66.3 percent of the world's total by the end of 2017, said Lu Dongfu, general manager of China Railway Corporation.
Its fixed asset investment on railways in 2018 will be 732 billion yuan (about 112 billion U.S. dollars), lower than the annual average during the 2013-2017 period, according to Lu.
The operator is aiming to build 4,000 km of new rail lines this year, 3,500 km of which will be high-speed rail tracks.
China's railway network will hit 175,000 km (about 108,740 miles) in length by 2025, compared with 127,000 km of operating tracks by the end of last year.
In 2017, a total of 3.04 billion passenger trips were made on railways, up 9.6 percent year on year. More than 56 percent of those trips were made on high-speed railways.
About 70 percent of rail tickets were sold online, while more than 70 percent of freight business were transacted online.
The maximum speed of China's bullet trains rises to 350 kilometers per hour, when Fuxing (Rejuvenation) bullet trains started operation between Beijing and Shanghai on September 21, 2017.
The Fuxing trains are a substantial upgrade on the previous bullet trains known as Hexie (Harmony). Entirely designed and manufactured in China, the Fuxing is more spacious and energy-efficient, with a longer service life and better reliability. The Fuxing also has a sophisticated monitoring system that automatically slows the train in case of emergency or abnormal conditions.
Last year, 3,600 cargo train trips were made between China and European cities, surpassing the previous six years combined, Lu said.
