Beijing–Guangzhou railway

Beijing–Guangzhou railway 京广铁路
The Jingguang railway on the Snake Hill in Wuhan. In the far background, the railway crosses the Yangtze over the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge.
Overview
Type	Heavy rail
System	China Railway
Status	Operational
Locale	Beijing, Hebei, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong
Termini	Beijing West Guangzhou
Stations	53 active
Operation
Operator(s)	China Railway
Technical
Line length	2,324 km (1,444 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Operating speed	150–200 kilometres per hour (93–124 mph)
Route map km Beijing–Kowloon railway Beijing West  7   9  Beijing-Guangzhou HSR Yongding River Changxindian Beijing–Yuanping railway Liangxiang Doudian Liulihe Zhoukoudian–Liulihe railway Beijing Hebei Province 64 Zhuozhou 84 Gaobeidian Gaobeidian–Yixian railway 122 Xushui 146 Baoding Baoding–Mancheng County railway 179 Wangdu 206 Dingzhou Shuozhou–Huanghua railway Zhaixidian 239 Xinle Zhengding Shijiazhuang–Dezhou railway Shijiazhuang (original site) Beijing-Guangzhou HSR 277 Shijiazhuang  3  Beijing-Guangzhou HSR Shijiazhuang–Taiyuan railway 309 Yuanshi 328 Gaoyi Lincheng 390 Xingtai 414 Shaheshi Shahe–Wuji railway 442 Handan Handan–Changzhi railway Handan–Jinan railway Matou Matou–Cishan railway 473 Cixian Hebei Province Henan Province Anyang–Lizhen railway 502 Anyang 524 Tangyin Tangyin–Heshan railway 543 Hebi 584 Weihui 609 Xinxiang Xinxiang–Yueshan railway Xinxiang–Yanzhou railway Jiaozuo East Zhengzhou-Jiaozuo intercity railway Yellow River Longhai railway 689 Zhengzhou  1  Longhai railway Xinzheng 753 Changge 775 Xuchang 801 Linying Mengmiao–Baofeng railway 829 Luohe Luohe–Fuyang railway 851 Xiping 877 Suiping 895 Zhumadian 915 Queshan 952 Minggang Nanjing–Xi'an railway 991 Xinyang Nanjing–Xi'an railway Henan Province Hubei Province 1,056 Guangshui 1,101 Huayuan 1,135 Xiaogan Hefei–Wuhan railway Wuhan–Macheng railway 1,205 Hankou  2  Hankou–Danjiangkou railway Yangtze River Wuhan–Jiujiang railway 1,225 Wuchang  4   7   11  Wuchang South Wuhan–Jiujiang railway 1,305 Xianning 1,343 Chibi Hubei Province Hunan Province 1,398 Linxiang 1,410 Lukou 1,440 Yueyang Rongjiawan Miluo River 1,509 Miluo Changzhutan intercity railway 1,587 Changsha  2   3  Changzhutan intercity railway Hunan–Guizhou railway 1,639 Zhuzhou Zhejiang–Jiangxi railway G4 Beijing–Hong Kong– Macau Expressway]] 1,722 Hengshan 1,773 Hengyang Hunan–Guangxi railway Linghu 1,836 Leiyang Zixing–Xujiadong railway 1,920 Chenzhou 1,986 Pingshi Pingshi–Muchongcun railway Hunan Province Guangdong Province 2,023 Lechang 2,073 Shaoguan East G4 Beijing–Hong Kong– Macau Expressway 2,156 Yingde Beijing-Guangzhou HSR 2,267 Guangzhou North  9  Beijing-Guangzhou HSR Guangzhou-Maoming railway 2,294 Guangzhou  2   5   11  Guangzhou-Shenzhen Railway

The Beijing–Guangzhou railway or Jingguang railway (simplified Chinese: 京广铁路; traditional Chinese: 京廣鐵路; pinyin: Jīngguǎng tiělù) is a major arterial railway that connects Beijing in the north with Guangzhou in the south. This dual-track electrified line has a total length of 2,324 kilometres (1,444 mi) and spans five provinces through north, central and south China. The line passes through the provincial capitals of each of those provinces, namely: Shijiazhuang (Hebei), Zhengzhou (Henan), Wuhan (Hubei), Changsha (Hunan) and Guangzhou (Guangdong). The line's two terminal stations are the Beijing West railway station and the Guangzhou railway station.

History

Dazhimen Station in Hankou, the original southern terminal of the Jinghan railway

The Jingguang railway was originally two railways: the Beijing–Hankou railway in the north from Beijing to Hankou, and the Guangdong–Hankou railway in the south from Wuchang to Guangzhou. Hankou and Wuchang were cities on opposite sides of the Yangtze River that became part of the present city of Wuhan in 1927.

The Beijing–Hankou (Jinghan) railway, 1,215 km (755 mi) in length, was built from 1897 to 1906.^[1] The concession was originally awarded to a Belgian company that was backed by French investors. A strong desire to bring the route under Chinese control led to the formation of the Bank of Communications to secure the financing needed to buy back the railway from its Belgian owners. The successful redemption of the railway in 1909 enhanced the prestige of the Communications Clique, which became a powerful political force in the early Republic.^[2]

The Guangdong–Hankou (Yuehan) railway began construction in 1900 and progressed more slowly.^[1] The concession was originally awarded to the American China Development Company, but a diplomatic crisis erupted when the Belgians purchased a controlling interest in the company. The concession was cancelled in 1904 to prevent Franco-Belgian interests from controlling the entire route between Beijing and Guangdong.^[2] The Guangzhou–Sanshui branch line was completed in 1904.^[3] The Changsha-Zhuzhou section was then completed in 1911, followed by the Guangzhou-Shaoguan section in 1916 and the Wuchang-Changsha section in 1918.^[1] Work on the last section between Zhuzhou and Shaoguan began in 1929 and was finally completed in 1936.^[1][4]

On 7 February 1923, workers of the Beijing-Wuhan Railway Workers' association launched a massive strike demanding better workers' rights and protesting oppression by warlords. The strike organized by Shi Yang and Lin Xiangqian was an early example of worker mobilization by the Communist Party of China.^[5]

Major stations

An SS8 locomotive hauling a passenger train at Huaishuling in Fengtai District, Beijing.

From north to south:

• Beijing West or Fengtai
• Baoding, Hebei
• Shijiazhuang, Hebei
• Handan, Hebei
• Xinxiang, Henan
• Zhengzhou, Henan
• Luohe, Henan
• Xinyang, Henan
• Hankou, Hubei
• Wuchang, Hubei
• Yueyang, Hunan
• Changsha, Hunan
• Zhuzhou, Hunan
• Hengyang, Hunan
• Shaoguan, Guangdong
• Guangzhou, Guangdong

Service

The Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge, built in 1957, connected the Beijing–Hankou railway and Guangzhou–Wuchang railways to form the Jingguang railway.

Currently, the nonstop Beijing–Kowloon "Jingjiu" through train operates on this line. Prior to 2003, this train called at stops along the route before they were eliminated to create a through service directly from the capital to Hong Kong.

Parallel lines

The Beijing–Kowloon railway, completed in 1996, is another "conventional" railway connecting Beijing with the Pearl River Delta. It runs mostly within 100–300 km (60–190 mi) to the east of the Beijing–Guangzhou railway.

The Beijing–Guangzhou high-speed railway runs through the same major cities as the "original" Beijing–Guangzhou railway, on a slightly different route (avoiding built-up areas, and having a greater curve radius, for higher speeds and somewhat shorter overall length). In most cities along the line, the high-speed trains stop at different, purpose-built stations, rather than the older stations served by the "original" Beijing–Guangzhou railway.^[6] The Wuhan to Guangzhou section of the high-speed railway opened in 2009, and the Beijing to Wuhan section opened in 2012.

As consecutive sections of the Beijing–Guangzhou high-speed railway became operational, the railway authorities shifted a large portion of passenger traffic from the original Beijing–Guangzhou railway to the new high-speed line. This allowed an increase in the amount of freight volume transported over the original Beijing–Guangzhou Railway. For example, according to preliminary estimates, after the entire Beijing–Guangzhou high-speed railway opens, the annual freight capacity of the northern half of the Beijing–Guangzhou railway (between its two main freight stations, Beijing's Fengtai West Station and Wuhan North railway station) would increase by 20 million tons.^[7]

Accidents

• 2009 Hunan train collision, 3 dead, 50+ injured.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Beijing–Guangzhou Railway.

• List of railways in China
• Beijing-Kowloon Railway
• Rail transport in the People's Republic of China

References