Han Ximin

18324295095@qq.com

A YELLOW train left Shenzhen North Railway Station at 1:10 p.m. yesterday, marking the start of test runs on the Guangdong section of the Ganzhou-Shenzhen High-speed Railway, a link between Shenzhen and the city of Ganzhou in East China’s Jiangxi Province, which is scheduled to be in operation this year.

The No. 55690 test-run train, nicknamed Doctor Huang, will conduct real-time inspections on the route, rail foundations, communication signals and contact nets along its way from Shenzhen to Heping, a Guangdong county bordering Jiangxi.

Data collected through devices installed on the train will be used as technical support for the official operation of the 436.37-kilometer high-speed rail.

The Guangdong section spans 301 kilometers and is designed to allow trains to run at 350 kilometers per hour.

“To prepare for the high-speed rail’s operation, we have renovated and upgraded the signal, contact nets and diversion rails north of Shenzhen North Railway Station and set up an auxiliary station,” Xie Yingbin, deputy commander of the project’s construction in Shenzhen.

Shenzhen North Railway Station’s four-year renovation has concluded with six lines added to connect with trains running on the Ganzhou-Shenzhen, Shenzhen-Shenshan and Shenzhen-Maoming high-speed railways.

Ganzhou, located in the southernmost region of landlocked Jiangxi, occupies about a quarter of the province. It enjoys a distinct geographical position being adjacent to Hunan, Guangdong and Fujian provinces.

The Ganzhou-Shenzhen High-speed Railway is part of the planned Beijing-Hong Kong High-speed Railway — a key vertical section of the nation’s high-speed railway network that directly connects Hong Kong with the nation’s capital.

The Ganzhou-Shenzhen High-speed Railway has 14 stations in total, nine in Guangdong including Heyuan, Huizhou and Dongguan.

After the rail is put into operation before the end of this year, travel time between Shenzhen and Ganzhou will be cut to two hours from the current seven hours.

It will also increase Shenzhen North Railway Station’s daily passenger turnover to 170,000, up 14 percent, according to the station.