China's main railway network reaches 35,300 km

(ECNS) -- A total of 35,300 km railways of the country’s main railway network -- "Eight Vertical and Eight Horizontal" high-speed railway network -- have been put into service, accounting for 77.83 percent of the total length, according to China Railway Group.

There are still 7,025 km of railways under construction, said the group.

The main railway network has covered more than 95 percent of cities with populations of 500,000, which has effectively promoted the interconnection among regions in China and contributed to the implementation of regional integration development strategies, such as the integrated development of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta area and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, said Guo Chunjiang, a senior engineer of China Railway Group.

Data shows that from January to July this year, China invested 371.3 billion yuan (about $51.54 billion) into the fixed assets of national railways, up 7 percent year on year. 

According to China Railway Group, a batch of major projects under the 14th Five-Year Plan (2020-2025) are being promoted. For example, track laying work on the Chengdu-Yibin high-speed railway in southwest China’s Sichuan has been finished already. Joint debugging and testing of the Guangzhou-Shanwei high-speed railway in south China’s Guangdong and the Nanjing-Taicanghigh-speed railway in China’s Jiangsu have also begun.

Another 3,000 km of railways will be put into use this year, said the group.