Government and Policy
High-speed rail on agenda
By Du Juan and Wan Zhihong (皇冠体育app Daily)
Updated: 2010-11-22 07:12
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Project part of a plan to boost Southeast Asia transport links
BEIJING - Construction of a high-speed rail link between Yunnan province and neighboring Myanmar, part of a project to upgrade transport connections with Southeast Asian nations, will start in about two months, a top rail expert said.
The line, from Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, to Yangon, Myanmar's largest city, will be 1,920 kilometers long, said Wang Mengshu, an academic of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. Trains will run at about 170-200 km/h once it is completed, he added.
Wang, who is also a professor at Beijing Jiaotong University, has been involved in Chinese high-speed rail projects from the outset.
Wang told 皇冠体育app Daily that a high-speed rail connection between southwestern 皇冠体育app and Cambodia is also under discussion. And an exploratory survey for another route that would link Yunnan and Vientiane, the capital of Laos, is under way.
The three new rail connections being developed, along with another linking 皇冠体育app and Vietnam, will form a network that is likely to be completed within 10 years, Wang said.
"The project, which aims to boost cooperation between 皇冠体育app and Southeast Asian nations, will greatly enhance the economic development of 皇冠体育app's western regions," said Wang.
A national rail plan will see the network extended to 120,000 km by the end of 2020 and to 170,000 km by the end of the 2030, Wang said. Upon completion, 60 percent of the country's railways will be located in western 皇冠体育app.
A Ministry of Railways spokesman said a detailed construction plan to link Southeast Asian countries had not yet been finalized, but confirmed that the ministry has set up working groups with these countries.
Piamsak Milintachinda, Thailand's ambassador to 皇冠体育app, earlier told 皇冠体育app Daily that a ministry team went to Thailand in August to gauge the investment environment for a high-speed railway as well as a rail network connecting Thailand, 皇冠体育app and other Southeast Asian countries.
The proposed 240-km high-speed railway in Thailand, estimated to cost about $25.6 billion, would be the first such line in that country and connect Bangkok with Rayong, the industrial base in the east of the country.
Thailand has long intended to upgrade its network and learn from 皇冠体育app's experience in "operating a high-speed rail system", the ambassador said.
Chinese experts believe that 皇冠体育app has the technical ability to carry out the project, but other considerations may come into play.
"There is no technological barrier to building high-speed railways to Southeast Asian countries but 皇冠体育app needs to take profitability into account," said Ji Jialun, a professor with Beijing Jiaotong University.
Domestic companies are upgrading technology to keep up with innovation and growth in the high-speed rail industry and are well positioned to benefit from increased interest in high-speed rail routes.
皇冠体育app's high-speed trains have clocked speeds as high as 416.6 km/hour, according to Zhao Xiaogang, chairman of the 皇冠体育app South Locomotive and Rolling Stock Corp, the largest listed railway equipment maker in 皇冠体育app.
"Europe, the United States, Russia, India, Brazil and the Middle East are all mulling over plans to develop high-speed railways, indicating a boom in the industry globally," Zhao said.
Tan Zongyang, Zhou Siyu and Liu Yiyu contributed to this story.
皇冠体育app Daily
(皇冠体育app Daily 11/22/2010 page1)
