Changchun Passenger Railway Car Plant, the largest plant of its kind in China, is capable of producing high-speed trains that can reach a speed of 300 kilometers per hour (approximately 186 miles per hour).
Ma Shukun, head of the plant, said that China is developing railway trains capable of travelling faster. His plant has grasped the core technology of bogie, which will make it possible to increase the speed of trains to 300 kilometers per hour.
China's first high-speed train driven by alternating current came off the production line at the passenger railway car plant located in Changchun, capital city of northeast China's Jilin Province Thursday.
The experimental speed of the train reached 230 kilometers per hour. The train, consisting of one locomotive and five cars, is expected to run at a speed of 200 kilometers per hour on the railway between Guangzhou, capital city of south China's Guangdong Province, and Shenzhen, also in Guandong Province, in early November.
Electric powered locomotives are considered safe, convenient, pollution free and ideal for shuttle services between cities and within downtown and suburban areas.
The development of high speed trains is a key state scientific and technological project which is an essential part of the Ninth Five Year (1996-2000) Plan.
Railway transport in China has long lagged behind the pace of economic growth in recent years. The Ministry of Railways has been making efforts to make trains run faster.
(People's Daily)
