The Hindu Business Line : China on bullet-fast track of progress

China’s very own bullet trains — a pair of ‘D’ trains, capable of a maximum speed of 250 kmph — leave Shanghai, and Beijing everyday at the same time, 10.50 hours, reaching their respective destinations 1,463 km away at exactly 20.49 hours or just under 10 hours, maintaining an average speed of 146 kpmh! Back home, the superfast Rajdhani Express, the pride of Indian Railways, covers 1,389 km from Mumbai to Delhi in 17 hours, clocking an average speed of just 82 kmph!

That’s not all. For another set of superfast express, the ‘Z’ category train, not one or two but five pairs are timetabled to run from both sides during the prime time evening slot of 19.00 to 20.00 hours, each way. It offers, at a relatively cheap cost of 499 yuan (about Rs 2,500) a first-class air-conditioned berth (called a soft sleeper), a highly popular overnight travel alternative to the air ticket of about 2,000 yuan between Shanghai and Beijing. It also offers a cheaper alternative of a hard seat, equivalent to our 3-tier A/C sleeper, 350 yuan (about Rs 1,750).

Though the interior and bed linen are squeaky clean as compared to the Rajdhani, liveried service is conspicuous by its absence. Standard Chinese fare of a plastic tray with casseroles and the like, hygienically packed but with little or no alternative, is available for 20 yuan as dinner. The breakfast at 6.30 a.m., costing 25 yuan, could be Chinese or Western, with eggs, and bacon, as part of the sumptuous fare offered by a cheerful lady attendant from the pantry car.

Four classes

Chinese Railways offers four classes of travel, namely, soft seat, soft sleeper, hard seat, and hard sleeper, the Indian equivalents being first class a/c sleeper, second class a/c sleeper, a/c chair car and second class 3 tier a/c sleeper. Short distance trains normally have just hard seats, although some inter-city trains also have soft seats.

Of course, for the discerning tourists who demand a little more privacy, a super deluxe class is available, which consists of what we call a first class a/c coupe, but with its own private wash room, toilet and an individual TV screen, occasionally showing English language movies!

A single coach attendant in smart western-style uniform, with a cubicle to himself as his office on the train, ensured that not only was the bed linen in order, the bathroom clean and toilet paper in place, but also that empty compartments were kept locked till passengers at wayside stations such as Nanjing boarded the train. No chance for the ubiquitous MP’s family and their entourage to occupy the berths illegally while the train conductor is busy elsewhere!

With few halts, compared to the Rajdhani, and a steady top speed of over 130 kmph on silky-smooth long welded rails, even a Z train offers one of the most comfortable overnight train rides!

Interestingly, the Rajdhani, when first introduced on the Delhi-Mumbai sector, covered the journey in less than 16 hours with just two halts, more for crew change than commercial reasons, until some powerful MPs along the route found the additional stoppage at wayside stations such as Surat enhanced their status!

Tech tie-ups

Not known for doing anything in half measures, a few years ago, Chinese Railways decided to hike the average speed of most of its long-distance trains from a sedate 90 kpmh to 200 and then 250 kpmh. By no means a cheap exercise, it would involve track and rolling stock upgrades for which it decided to go to the best people in the field and has, over the last five years, successively upgraded the maximum speeds on about 6,000 km of new track to about 200 kpmh.

Technology tie-ups with Alstom of France and Bombardier of Canada have given it the knowhow to manufacture rolling stock capable of being run at 250 kpmh. A number of facilities that, till 2002-03, were part of the Chinese Railways, are now run as independent companies with their own profit centres. They are busy churning out coaches for Chinese Railways and the growing appetite for metro rolling stock, not only for China but for systems around the world.

Cleared of clutter

Perhaps one of the most striking aspects of the over decade-long urban renewal in China has been the Railways infrastructure, the station buildings. Except for Beijing, which retains its heritage status with the original masonry structure, most of the old buildings have been demolished, giving way to modern glass-aluminiumstainless steel structures that look more like airport terminals.

To facilitate easy access to and exit from station premises, vehicle parking is about 100 metres away. Taxis line up and move off with passengers on a ‘first-come-first-served’ basis. Of course, the assistance of the traffic warden is sometimes needed if one has to travel a short distance — as we had to, for a couple of kilometres, to the Beijing International Hotel.

Ticketed admission to station premises ensures that only the genuine travelling public has access to station facilities. Hardly an opportunity for the stampedes witnessed at New Delhi stations at the time of the annual Chhat fair, when massive crowds, with or without reservation, descend on just a couple of East-bound trains!