China tests high-speed train reaching 453km/h, fastest in the world

China Railway said it has conducted a test run of its new CR450 high-speed train on a railway section in Fujian Province, eastern China.

On June 28, the test train ran over the overpass and through Meizhou Bay, reaching a speed of 453km/h.

A day later, the train continued to reach a speed of 420km/h during a test through the Haiwei Tunnel.

Not only that, some high-tech components on board also met operating targets.

Global Times news agency assessed that the successful test marked an important milestone in the development of the new generation of high-speed trains CR450.

Illustration photo (Photo: China Railway)

The CR450 train is designed to operate at an average speed of 400km/h as part of the CR450 Technology Innovation Project to develop a new generation of high-speed trains that are faster, safer, more environmentally friendly, energy-saving and smarter by China Railway.

The current high-speed train operating in China has a maximum speed of 350km/h, making it the fastest high-speed train in the world. The high-speed trains operating in Japan and France have a maximum speed of only about 320km/h.

When the train operates at 400km/h, the journey from Beijing to Shanghai will be reduced to 2.5 hours. If compared to the journey from New York to Washington DC, USA, the travel time will be shortened to less than 55 minutes, compared to the current 3-4 hours by car or train.

According to Mr. Sun Zhang, an expert in the field of railways at Tongji University, Shanghai, improving the speed of high-speed trains, including the CR450 high-speed train project, helps maintain China's position as a country with the world's leading high-speed train technology.

Mr. Sun commented that once reaching a certain high speed, continuing to increase the maximum speed is not an easy task.

Therefore, the fact that the CR450 high-speed train reaches a speed 50km/h faster than China's current fastest high-speed train represents a leap in quality and technology and is an important milestone in the development of China's high-speed rail.