The national railway network will adopt a new train schedule starting from midnight on July 1, the China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. said recently. Notably, the Chongqing East-Qianjiang section of the Chongqing-Xiamen High-speed Railway will open to traffic, linking with the railway's existing Qianjiang-Changde and Changde-Yiyang-Changsha sections. With this update, the shortest travel times from Chongqing and Chengdu to Changsha will be cut to 3 hours and 53 minutes, and 5 hours and 45 minutes, respectively, further strengthening connections between the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan metropolitan area and the Chengdu-Chongqing region.

After the new train schedule takes effect, the national railway system will arrange 13,302 scheduled passenger trains, an increase of 236 compared to the current schedule, and operate 23,635 freight trains, 39 more than the current figure. This adjustment will further improve the capacity, service quality, and operational efficiency of both passenger and freight transportation.

Among the changes, the Hangzhou-Changsha section of the Shanghai-Kunming High-speed Railway will operate 46 benchmark trains known for fewer stops, higher speeds, and shorter travel times, 36 more than the current schedule. Following the operation of the Chongqing East-Qianjiang section of the Chongqing-Xiamen High-speed Railway, 18 electric multiple unit (EMU) trains will run between Chongqing and Qianjiang, along with an additional 32 EMU trains connecting western cities like Chengdu and Chongqing to central cities such as Changsha and Nanchang. The shortest travel times from Chongqing and Chengdu to Changsha will be reduced by 1 hour and 18 minutes, and 50 minutes, respectively, compared to the current schedule.

Meanwhile, the number of passenger trains will be increased on some routes, and more stops will be included to improve network accessibility and coverage. For instance, two more EMU trains will operate between Xi'an and Changsha, while two regular-speed passenger trains will run for the first time between Harbin and Changsha. Additionally, 30 more stops of regular-speed passenger trains will be made at county-level city stations in central and northern regions of Hunan.

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Kuang Zhenzhen

Chinese source: changsha.gov.cn