On July 1, the China Railway Group announced that it has completed performance testing for the key high-tech components of the CR450 high-speed train.
Notably, this train can travel at the fastest speed in the world, exceeding 400 km/h, marking a significant milestone in China’s world-leading high-speed rail technology.
China is striving to promote the development of a new generation of high-speed trains that are faster, safer, environmentally friendly, energy-efficient, and smarter. Accordingly, the China Railway Group conducted tests of the CR450 train along the railway from Fuzhou to Quanzhou in Fujian Province, eastern China.
CR450 High-Speed Train.
On June 28, a test run was successfully conducted on the Maizhou Bay sea-crossing bridge. The CR450 reached a speed of 453 km/h, with a relative speed of 891 km/h. The next day, the train continued testing in the Haiwei Tunnel at a speed of 420 km/h and a relative speed of 840 km/h.
The new technological components were approved after performance tests yielded effective results, demonstrated through various indicators. This achievement marks an important milestone in the development of the CR450 high-speed train, laying a solid foundation for the implementation of the CR450 Technology Innovation Project, according to the China Railway Group.
The CR450 is designed to operate at a speed of 400 km/h. Currently, the fastest operational speed of high-speed trains in China is 350 km/h, which is also the fastest operational speed on high-speed rail worldwide. According to local Chinese media, the highest operational speeds of high-speed trains in Japan and France are set at 320 km/h.
With a speed of 400 km/h, the CR450 will shorten the journey from Beijing to Shanghai to just 2.5 hours. At such a speed, the distance from New York to Washington D.C. could take less than 55 minutes, compared to the usual 3-4 hours by car or conventional train.
Unlike the acceleration tests that took place from 1997 to 2007, where China was striving to lead among nations, recent tests have helped China maintain its advantage in operating the world’s fastest trains, according to Sun Zhang, a railway expert at Tongji University in Shanghai.
CR450 is designed to operate at a speed of 400 km/h.
Mr. Sun recalls the sixth speed test on April 18, 2007, when China increased train speeds from 160 km/h to 200 km/h. After launching high-speed trains in 2008, the country quickly took the lead with trains operating at speeds of 350 km/h as seen today.
He further noted that after reaching a certain speed, increasing the speed further is a challenging task. He emphasized that with an additional increase of 50 km/h, the CR450 will serve as a prime example of a leap in quality and play a crucial role as a significant milestone in the development of China’s high-speed rail system.
