2016年CRI China Witnesses Biggest Railway Expansion in One Decade

 

The latest service adjustment will see the number of passenger trains in China grow to 3400 pairs, out of which over 2100 pairs are high-speed.

100 pairs of bullet trains have been scheduled to operate in the mornings and evenings, in a bid to make it more convenient for passengers to go from small and medium-sized cities to bigger ones through the night.

38 railway stations located at county or prefecture level towns have now become departure stations, operating services heading for China's big cities.

Wang Kejian, an official from a departure station in northwest China's Yulin city in Shaanxi Province, explained the convenience brought about by the new line linking his city with east China's Suzhou city in Jiangsu.

"In the past, if we wanted to travel to Suzhou, we could only take the train linking north China's Hohhot in Inner Mongolia with Shanghai Municipality, which only had 15 tickets available. The new line offers 1180 tickets, 340 of them sleeper¹ tickets. This has greatly alleviated² the pressure for us on buying train tickets which used to be in short supply."

Nearly 100 pairs of the newly added trains link small cities in central and west China with big cities nearby, raising hopes that better connectivity will mean increased prosperity.

This includes new trains running through Yinchuan and Ningdong, the first intercity express linking both cities inside northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous³ Region.

According to Wang Dalin, chief of Yinchuan passenger traffic section, it is actually an extension of services from Yinchuan to Shanghai.

"Previously⁴, when a train came back to Yinchuan from Shanghai after completing one passenger transport mission, it would rest for 24 hours before starting the next one. But now, after the adjustment, the 24-hour leisure time will be made good use of, meaning the train will head for Ningdong within the period of time."

Meanwhile, a number of loop line railways will start operation in the region of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei in north China.

Zhu Dianping, head of the station management section of the Beijing Railway Bureau, explains the significance of the move.

"The new circular railway is similar to a subway line, which runs both clockwise and counter-clockwise in different directions. This offers more choice for passengers who are willing to travel through different prefecture-level towns and cities."

Another highlight is the number of trains designed for tourists has been increased to 69, providing a variety of leisure services to the passengers on board, such as exercise facilities, massage⁵ equipment, and even virtual reality movies.

As yet, the changes haven't had a knock-on effect on the prices of the train tickets.

China is planning to spend 3.5 trillion yuan in the next five years creating more than 30,000 kilometers of new track, with central and western parts of the country a key part of the plan.

1 sleeper   

n.睡眠者，卧车，卧铺

参考例句：

• I usually go up to London on the sleeper. 我一般都乘卧车去伦敦。
• But first he explained that he was a very heavy sleeper. 但首先他解释说自己睡觉很沉。

2 alleviated   

减轻，缓解，缓和( alleviate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It is always completely alleviated by total gastrectomy. 全胃切除永远完全缓解症状。
• Toxicity problem in manufacturing and storage might be alleviated by coating beryllium with aluminum. 但如果用铝包覆铍，则可避免加工过程中及储存期间的中毒问题。

3 autonomous   

adj.自治的；独立的

参考例句：

• They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province.他们自豪地宣布成为新自治省的一部分。
• This is a matter that comes within the jurisdiction of the autonomous region.这件事是属于自治区权限以内的事务。

4 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

5 massage   

n.按摩，揉；vt.按摩，揉，美化，奉承，篡改数据

参考例句：

• He is really quite skilled in doing massage.他的按摩技术确实不错。
• Massage helps relieve the tension in one's muscles.按摩可使僵硬的肌肉松弛。