A new bullet train whisks passengers from Beijing to Shanghai - 800 miles in a mere 5 hours

[marmar]

A new bullet train whisks passengers the 800 miles from Beijing to Shanghai - 800 miles in a mere 5 hours
August 20, 2012|By Huntly Collins, For The Inquirer


BEIJING - With its sparkling domed skylight, polished granite floor tiles, grand piano, and string of retail outlets such as Timberland and Nautica, the Beijing South Railway Station could compete with the world's finest for modernity and cleanliness.

It was here in December that we boarded China's new high-speed bullet train that whisked us off to Shanghai, more than 800 miles to the south, in just five hours. For efficiency and comfort at a relatively low price ($185 round-trip for second-class seats that were nicer than those on Amtrak's Acela), you can't beat it. Cruising at about 185 m.p.h., the bullet train provides a smooth, quiet ride through China's eastern industrial corridor as it snakes south through four provinces before reaching its terminus at Shanghai's Hongqiao Rail Station. This is like leaving Philadelphia's 30th Street Station at 10 a.m. and arriving in Atlanta by 3 p.m.

Opened with much fanfare on June 30, 2011, the Beijing-to-Shanghai line is the world's longest high-speed railway. It was constructed in just three years at a cost of $32 billion, part of the massive government stimulus package that helped cushion China from the ravages of the global financial crisis. Not surprisingly, the rapid infusion of money into the state-run railway system brought not only economic stimulus but also corruption, mismanagement, and lax safety oversight. ...................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://articles.philly.com/2012-08-20/news/33273369_1_bullet-train-high-speed-rail-system-train-crashes

[John Frum]

1. Yes, but....

do they have an open bar?

[Bonobo]

2. Stolen Japanese tech. nt

[liberal N proud]

3. About the same time it take to travel from New York to DC

And that is less than 250 miles.

But this cutting edge country is too conservative to invest in new infrastructure.

[nanabugg]

6. Yeah, it would give too many ingrates jobs to make a decent wage since CEO can't build a damn thing.

[Dreamer Tatum]

4. I don't understand the fascination with high speed rail

People think it's a solution to our problems, but that seems like bullshit.

How would it help poor people? How would a bullet train be anything other than another way for the 1% to
get around?

Anyone want to guess how much it would cost to go from LA to SF roundtrip on a bullet train? An entire day's
wages or more for someone who could somehow commute that way.

As for the rail system putting people to work, there are cheaper ways to achieve that goal.

[GreenPartyVoter]

5. The 1% would never use it. It is intended to be mainly a

middle class people-mover, and a way to cut down on automobile usage.

[Dreamer Tatum]

7. People can't afford that.

Look at Amtrak from Baltimore to NYC. Or Philly to NYC. Very expensive except for the well-to-do.

High speed rail is a white elephant.

[GreenPartyVoter]

8. Maybe. Maybe not. The airline industry is dying as a people-mover. It will eventually be replaced

with sub-orbital flights that will absolutely be out of reach for most people. At that point high speed rail will have to pick up the slack, and buses will have to cover the rest. (Hopefully the buses will run on some sort of clean energy.)