Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway

Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway
Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway
Technical
Line length	298.1 km (185 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)
Operating speed	200 km/h (124 mph) max.

Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway
Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway
Simplified Chinese	温福铁路
Traditional Chinese	溫福鐵路
Hanyu Pinyin
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Wēnfú Tiělù

Hangzhou–Fuzhou–Shenzhen high-speed railway
Wenzhou–Fuzhou Section
Hangzhou–Fuzhou–Shenzhen high-speed railway Wenzhou–Fuzhou Section
	The railway in Lianjiang County, Fujian.
Overview
Native name	杭福深高速铁路温福段
Status	Operational
Owner	CR Shanghai; CR Nanchang;
Locale	Zhejiang province; Fujian province
Service
Type	High-speed rail; Heavy rail
System	China Railway High-speed
Operator(s)	CR Shanghai; CR Nanchang;
Depot(s)	Fuzhou
History
Opened	September 28, 2009
Technical
Line length	298.1 km (185 mi)
Number of tracks	2 (Double-track)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	25 kV 50 Hz AC (Overhead line)
Operating speed	250 km/h (155 mph)
Maximum incline	0.6%
Route map
Route map
	Legend
	Yongtaiwen railway
	to Hangzhou
	Zhejiang
	Fujian
	Fuxia railway
	to Shenzhen North via Xiamen North
	This diagram: view; talk; edit;

The Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway, also known as the Wenfu railway, (Chinese: 温福铁路) is a dual-track, electrified, high-speed rail line running between Wenzhou in Zhejiang and Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian. The line has a total length of 298.4 km (185.4 mi) and forms part of the Hangzhou–Fuzhou–Shenzhen passenger-dedicated railway. Construction began in August 2005, and the line opened to freight traffic on July 1, 2009. Passenger service began on September 28, 2009. Trains running on the line reach top speeds of 250 kilometres per hour, and the shortest trip between Wenzhou and Fuzhou takes 1.5 hours.^[1] The line required investment of ¥12.66 billion.^[1] To improve connections between Fuzhou and Zhejiang, the government is proposing to build a faster parallel passenger dedicated line called the Wenzhou–Fuzhou high-speed railway.^[2]^[3]

Route

The Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway follows the rugged but prosperous coast of southern Zhejiang and northern Fujian with 69 km (43 mi) in the former and 229.1 km (142.4 mi) in the latter.^[1] Bridges and tunnels account for over 78% of the line's total length. Major cities along route include Rui'an, Cangnan, Fuding, Ningde, Luoyuan and Lianjiang.

History

The Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway is the first railway to connect the two neighboring provinces.^[1] Most high-speed rail lines in China follow the routes of older conventional railroads, but there were no railways on the southeast coast prior to the building of high-speed rail. Historically, the southeast coastal region relied on maritime transportation, and rugged terrain made railway construction more expensive. In the first half of the 20th century, warfare and political instability delayed railway construction. During the Cold War, the southeast coast faced the threat of invasion from Republic of China on Taiwan and all railways were built inland. Only when political tensions across the Taiwan Strait eased in the late 1990s did planning of the Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway take place. In October 2002, the project was initially approved by the National Development and Reform Commission as a single-track railway at the 140 km/h (87 mph) standard. The project was then upgraded to a double-track 200 km/h (120 mph) standard and received State Council approval in 2004. Construction on an experimental basis began in December 2004 and on a full-scale in August 2005.^[4] Track-laying was completed in April 2009. Freight and passenger service began, respectively on July 1 and September 28, 2009.^[4]