China started service 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 new 2,298-kilometre (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 required.
China Central Television broadcast the departure of the first train live from Beijing West Railway Station. It also carried live reports from inside showing passengers toting cameras to apparently snap commemorative photos.
Trains will travel at an average speed of 300 kilometres per hour over the line, which includes 35 stops in major cities such as Zhengzhou, Wuhan on the Yangtze River and Changsha.
State media have reported that December 26 was chosen to start passenger service on the Beijing-Guangzhou line to commemorate the birth in 1893 of revered 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 established in 2007, but has fast become the world's largest with 8,358km of track at the end of 2010. That is expected to almost double to 16,000 kilometres by 2020.
The network, however, has been plagued by graft and safety scandals, most notably a deadly bullet train collision in July 2011 that killed 40 people and sparked a public outrage.
The accident was China's worst rail disaster since 2008 and caused a torrent of criticism aimed at the government amid accusations that authorities compromised safety in their rush to expand the network.
