BEIJING -- China launched services Wednesday on the world's longest high-speed rail route, the latest milestone in the country's rapid and -- sometimes troubled -- super-fast rail network.
The opening of the 1,425-mile line between Beijing and Guangzhou means passengers will be whisked from the capital to the southern commercial hub in just eight hours, compared with the 22 hours previously.
The train departing Beijing traveled at an average speed of 300 kilometers per hour and made stops in four cities -- Shijiazhuang, Zhengzhou, Wuhan on the Yangtze River and Changsha -- before arriving in Guangzhou.
State media have reported that December 26 was chosen to start the Beijing-Guangzhou service to commemorate the birth in 1893 of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong.
The Beijing-Guangzhou route was made possible with the completion of a line between Zhengzhou and Beijing. High-speed sections linking Zhengzhou and Wuhan and Wuhan and Guangzhou were already in service.
China's high-speed rail network was only established in 2007 but has fast become the world's largest. The official Xinhua news agency said China now operates 9,300 kilometers of high-speed railways.
The state-run China Daily newspaper said Wednesday the high-speed rail network is set to jump to 50,000 kilometers by 2020, with four main lines running north and south and another four east and west.
