Express rails

Express passenger railways in China include the "Four Verticals and Four Horizontals" and three inter-city systems with speed exceeding 200 km per hour.

The 'Four Horizontals'

1. Beijing-Shanghai, with total mileage of 1,318 km, links the two economic regions around the Bohai Sea and the Yangtze River Delta.

2. Beijing-Wuhan-Guangzhou-Shenzhen, with total mileage of 2,260 km, links north and south China.

3. Beijing-Shenyang-Harbin, with total mileage of 1,700 km, links northeast China with the area inside Shanhaiguan.

4. Hangzhou-Ningbo-Fuzhou-Shenzhen, with total mileage of 1,600 km, links the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta and southeast coastal areas.

The 'Four Verticals'

1. Xuzhou-Zhengzhou-Lanzhou, with total mileage of 1,400 km, links northwest and east China.

2. Hangzhou-Nanchang-Changsha, with total mileage of 880 km, links central and east China

3. Qingdao-Shijiazhuang-Taiyuan, with total mileage of 770 km, links north and east China.

4. Nanjing-Wuhan-Chongqing-Chengdu, with total mileage of 1,600 km, links southwest and east China.

The three inter-city express passenger railways link cities in the Bohai Sea rim region, Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta.

Top 10 landmark railways

Datong-Qinhuangdao Railway:

With total mileage of 653 km, the Datong-Qinhuangdao Railway, the major corridor for transporting coal from the west (Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces and the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region) to the east, passes through Shanxi, Hebei, Beijing and Tianjin. It began operation in December 1992. Its technology meets international standards in that it was China's first heavy-haul railway, the first line to use a micro-computerized centralized traffic control system, and the first line to use an optical fiber communication system in the country.Drawing on the technological breakthroughs achieved on this railway, China was able to make substantial progress in heavy-haul railway transportation.