China unveils its fastest train

Chinas first domestically produced with the speed of 350 kilometres per hour, rolled off the production line.

New Delhi, Apr 12 : China's first domestically produced with the speed of 350 kilometres per hour, rolled off the production line.

The China Northern Locomotive and Rolling Stock Industry Corp produced the train, the latest model in the China Railway High-speed series, in the northern city of Tangshan.

After taking the train for a 2-km test run, Minister of Railways Liu Zhijun said that the train marked "a new, significant achievement in China's railway equipment modernisation."

The eight-carriage train, with a streamlined body made of light aluminium alloy, can seat 557 passengers.

Three such trains would begin service on the new 120-km Beijing-Tianjin route before the Olympics starts in August, the manufacturer said. They will cut the travel time from 80 minutes at present to 30 minutes.

In all, 57 such trains are expected to be in commercial operation by the end of 2009, the Xinhua reported.

ANI