The Opening of Xi'an–Yan'an High-Speed Railway

The Xi'an–Yan'an high-speed railway began operations on December 28. Supporting projects including the Xi'yan HSR connecting line to Xi'an North Station also opened simultaneously today, marking the entry of the revolutionary base areas in northern Shaanxi into the high-speed rail era.

The Xi'yan HSR starts at Xi'an East Station in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, passes through Weinan and Tongchuan, and connects to Yan'an Station in Yan'an. A connecting line leading into Xi'an North Station is being built simultaneously. The line is 299 km long with a designed speed of 350 km/h. This opening includes 10 stations: Gaoling, Fuping South, Tongchuan, Tongchuan North, Yijun, Huangling, Luochuan, Fuxian North, Ganquan North, and Yan'an. Among them, Ganquan North and Yan'an are renovated/expanded stations, while the rest are newly built. In addition, construction of Xi'an East Station is progressing in an orderly manner.

After the Xi'yan HSR is completed and opened, the maximum operating speed will be 350 km/h. The fastest travel times from Xi'an North to Fuping South, Tongchuan, and Yan'an will be 19 minutes, 27 minutes, and 68 minutes, respectively—56 minutes, 102 minutes, and 62 minutes shorter than the current fastest passenger trains.

(Image source: China Railway social media)