High-speed trains to Beijing get 30 minutes faster from Thursday

flickr: Sjors Provoost

At 7am on Thursday 21, two very speedy trains will set off from Beijing and Shanghai respectively, and arrive at their destinations in just over four and a half hours. Regular commuters between here and the capital, or just those of you who actually read the above headline, might notice that this is half an hour shorter than the time this journey normally takes.

The newly-souped up trains will travel at a top speed of a mind-boggling 350km/h, which is virtually as fast as the top speed of a Formula One car.

These faster trains will incur higher operating costs, according to some experts, and will consume greater amounts of energy, although this shouldn't be reflected in price hikes, with journeys likely to remain at 550RMB a pop for a second-class ticket.

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