Header Image: Train track in China CC Captcha
History and Development:
The Wusong Railroad-
After the worldwide industrial revolution, the steam engine accelerated the development of transportation, and the railway was created. The United Kingdom constructed the first public railroad in the world, and then other western countries, such as United States, France, Canada, Germany, and Italy all followed the suit. About 150 years ago, the first train station was built in China. However, when the rail was introduced to China, it was strongly rejected by the imperial leaders in the late Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1911). It was a time that horses and carts were widely used for transport and the railroad was regarded as a bad scheme that would destroy important military defenses, farmland and Fengshui (a kind of philosophy related to geographical features). Determined to expand their commercial enterprises, some Western countries continued to pursue the rights of rail line construction in China despite the rejections of the Qing Dynasty. After the defeat of the Opium War (1839 - 1842), many western countries attempted to build rail lines in China, but the proposals were still strongly rejected. Without the authorization of the rulers in the country, in 1865, the United Kingdom and United States together planned a railroad under the guise of a normal road construction project. The first rail line in China ensued, the Wusong Line. It traveled from Wusong to Shanghai with a length of 7.5 miles. Though it would later be destroyed by the dynasty, The Wusong Line is still regarded as the first chapter of the Chinese rail history ("China Railway History").
After the worldwide industrial revolution, the steam engine accelerated the development of transportation, and the railway was created. The United Kingdom constructed the first public railroad in the world, and then other western countries, such as United States, France, Canada, Germany, and Italy all followed the suit. About 150 years ago, the first train station was built in China. However, when the rail was introduced to China, it was strongly rejected by the imperial leaders in the late Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1911). It was a time that horses and carts were widely used for transport and the railroad was regarded as a bad scheme that would destroy important military defenses, farmland and Fengshui (a kind of philosophy related to geographical features). Determined to expand their commercial enterprises, some Western countries continued to pursue the rights of rail line construction in China despite the rejections of the Qing Dynasty. After the defeat of the Opium War (1839 - 1842), many western countries attempted to build rail lines in China, but the proposals were still strongly rejected. Without the authorization of the rulers in the country, in 1865, the United Kingdom and United States together planned a railroad under the guise of a normal road construction project. The first rail line in China ensued, the Wusong Line. It traveled from Wusong to Shanghai with a length of 7.5 miles. Though it would later be destroyed by the dynasty, The Wusong Line is still regarded as the first chapter of the Chinese rail history ("China Railway History").
The Tangxu Rail Line-
The real chapter of the rail history started with the local construction of the Tangxu Rail Line in 1881, from Tangshan to Xugezhuang. In order to speed up coal transport, the imperial court built a railroad for coal carriage to replace low-efficiency carts. To compromise, the carriage would be driven on the tracks by horses and not by steam engine. So the 6 miles (9.7 kilometers) of rail line was officially put into use. In the next year, the train was allowed to be pulled by steam engine, and the line was extended to Lutai in 1887 and to Tianjin in 1888, reaching up to 80.5 miles (130 kilometers). Now the line is still in service as a section of the rail from Beijing to Shenyang. During the Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895), Chinese people began to realize the great importance of the rail for military defense, so it was a chapter of awakening. In 1887, the rail construction work in Taiwan commenced, and the rail line from Taipei to Keelung and Hsinchu were completed respectively in 1891 and 1893 ("History of Chinese Railways").
The real chapter of the rail history started with the local construction of the Tangxu Rail Line in 1881, from Tangshan to Xugezhuang. In order to speed up coal transport, the imperial court built a railroad for coal carriage to replace low-efficiency carts. To compromise, the carriage would be driven on the tracks by horses and not by steam engine. So the 6 miles (9.7 kilometers) of rail line was officially put into use. In the next year, the train was allowed to be pulled by steam engine, and the line was extended to Lutai in 1887 and to Tianjin in 1888, reaching up to 80.5 miles (130 kilometers). Now the line is still in service as a section of the rail from Beijing to Shenyang. During the Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895), Chinese people began to realize the great importance of the rail for military defense, so it was a chapter of awakening. In 1887, the rail construction work in Taiwan commenced, and the rail line from Taipei to Keelung and Hsinchu were completed respectively in 1891 and 1893 ("History of Chinese Railways").
Current Day-
Today, China's railines are much more modern and transitiong to more of a "high-speed" program like their western neighbors. The November 2008 government stimulus package and the 12th Five-Year Plan both placed railways at the center of China’s long-term infrastructure development strategy. In 2009, there were significant investments in high-speed rail, and a target of 120,000 km of total track by 2018 was outlined during the stimulus program. The 12th Five-Year Plan has continued on with this investment pipeline, with a total high-speed track of 40,000 km set to be completed by 2015 and the total track target of 120,000 km brought forward to 2015. To attain these ambitious targets, annual investments of RMB 800 billion into railway infrastructure were previously announced. One of the goals of the high-speed rail program is to free track capacity for freight logistics. A vital aspect of the rail freight network is the transportation of coal and minerals. In 2010 coal accounted for 50.6 percent of total freight traffic, and metal ores another 12 percent. This is likely to be adversely affected by the sustainability targets in the 12th Five-Year Plan and a reduction on China’s dependence on coal-fired power generation. However, this will be accompanied by increases in domestic consumption and its need for freight transport, as evidenced by the four percent year-on-year increase in the June freight traffic ("Infrastructure in China"). For information of funding and graphs of the the railine development in China, click this link.
Sources:
Images-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_transport_in_China
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Xinshisu.jpg
http://www.railway-fasteners.com/news/history-of-chinese-railway-development.html
Writing-
https://www.travelchinaguide.com/china-trains/railway/history2.html
http://www.railway-fasteners.com/news/history-of-chinese-railway-development.html
Images-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_transport_in_China
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Xinshisu.jpg
http://www.railway-fasteners.com/news/history-of-chinese-railway-development.html
Writing-
https://www.travelchinaguide.com/china-trains/railway/history2.html
http://www.railway-fasteners.com/news/history-of-chinese-railway-development.html