Flying between the two capitals of China is a pain. And factoring in the inevitable delays, that’s why few do it today. And soon, there will be absolutely no reason to do so, as Nanjing is set to be a first beneficiary of trains capable of 400 kilometres per hour.
At present, the fastest trains on our planet are the G27 and G39 services from Beijing South Railway Station to Nanjing South Railway Station, which both complete the journey in just 3 hours and 13 minutes.
And that makes the two cities perfect recipients for the new generation of high-speed trains; the CR450, with a maximum possible speed of 450 km/h but an actual operational speed of 400 km/h.
As Railway Gazette reports, the two prototype trains revealed recently are the result of the CR450 Science & Technology Innovation Project that was launched in 2021.
Faster also means sleeker, which translates to more streamlining and an even longer nose for both prototypes so that they can cut smoothly through the air at high speeds. The nose of one resembles an arrow head, it is said; the other that of an eagle.
Lowering air resistance further has also been addressed by “bogie enclosures” for the train’s actual wheels. Making the train lighter has been another key factor; the CR450 weighs 10 percent less than its predecessor, the CR400.
Then there is the fact that each of the two 8-carriage sets are powered not just by the front and back of the train, but also by two other carriages, helping to push that maximum speed north of 400 km/h.
We are also told that the new trains will offer the same smooth and quiet ride that we are used to on those terribly-slow 350 km/h trains. Highly-advanced, noise-reduction technologies have been developed for the new trains which ensure that interior-noise levels will be similar to those we experience on trains in operation today.
The big question, of course, remains just how much faster will our commute from Beijing South to Nanjing South be in the future?
Today, the aforementioned two services cover the 1,023-kilometre distance between the two stations with a start-to-stop average speed of 318 km/h. But the new trains will top that, possibly by as much as 50 km/h. If so, that would make for a fastest journey time between the two capitals of 2 hours 47 minutes. Pretty much faster than a plane.