China has successfully marched ahead by developing bullet standard trains based on in-house norms and technologies. These trains are designed according to China's environment and rail transport patterns. Thus, China is ready to replace foreign standard models of bullet trains and reduce their production, operational, and maintenance costs to a great extent.

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"The new train, with our full intellectual property rights, will facilitate our efforts to export China's railway products and technologies. Compared with other models, it is safer, more comfortable and economically competitive," said He Huawu, chief engineer of the China Railway Corporation (CRC) and an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

The testing of the first Chinese-standard bullet train began in Beijing on June 30. Over the next two months, the two prototypes - with an operational speed of 350 kilometers per hour and a top speed of 400 kilometers per hour - will undergo several tests at the China Academy of Railway Sciences.

The trains will cover 600,000 kilometers during the trail runs on the Taiyuan-Yuanping section of the Datong-Xi'an high-speed line.

China has been working towards becoming one of the most innovative countries by 2020; the program to develop Chinese standard bullet trains was launched by the railway ministry in 2012. This innovation program brings together engineers from 30 institutes and companies.

This move seems to be the part of China's long-term infrastructure development strategy, one of the high points of the November 2008 government stimulus package and the 12th Five-Year Plan. Since 2009, huge investments have been made in the High-Speed Rail (HSR) industry. 

For many years, China's Ministry of Railways (MOR) resisted reforms, arguing that because railways form an integral part of the economy, reforming this sector may affect economic growth negatively. However, the MOR later sanctioned a $220-billion programme for the HSR construction.

In 2013, the policy and planning function was handed over to the Ministry of Transport, and the newly found CRC became responsible for the entire railway system of China.  

The widespread network of railways within China has changed the way its inhabitants live, work, and travel. High-speed trains are now carrying nearly twice the amount of passengers than the country's domestic airlines every month.

With traffic growing at 28 percent every year, China's HSR network will cater to many more passengers than the 54 million people who board domestic flights in the United States every month.

In 2013, the World Bank prepared a study that indicated an increase in worker productivity after different areas were connected to the HSR network.

The reason is simple: the accessibility of the companies to the potential employees and customers within a few hours of train ride and vice versa.

Due to the HSR network's inter and intra-city connectivity, many companies are opening their research and development centers in Beijing and Shenzhen to create opportunities for young and educated workers. Thus, the rail network is enabling workers to make frequent trips to factories in different cities and easily conduct meetings with clients.

"What we see very clearly is a change in the way a lot of companies are doing business," said Gerald Olivier, senior infrastructure specialist, World Bank.

The evolution of the rail transportation in China can also be linked to China's diplomatic ambitions with respect to the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN). Officials have reiterated that the lack of a Chinese-standard bullet train has hampered the nation's efforts to export its rail technology and products. This clearly indicates that China wants to retain its image as a leader in HSR development and is eager to take this technology to Asia, Europe and the U.S.

China has already signed a memorandum of understanding on railway sector cooperation with Russia, Brazil, and Turkey.

In 2012, Chinese railway companies won construction contracts for the HSR and trains in Turkey and Iran.

"Promoting China's rail technology in the ASEAN region reflects the Chinese government's efforts to project China's economic might, increase in its economic and diplomatic influence, and assert its political, strategic and economic interests in the ASEAN region," said Dr. Hong Yu in Copenhagen's Journal of Asian Studies, in 2014.

In a bid to get the approval from ASEAN member states, the Chinese government invited the trade ministers of 10 member states for a HSR train ride to Beijing in October 2013. 

The eagerness of China to get involved in HSR construction in ASEAN countries can be easily seen in some recent and upcoming projects including the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore rail link, Bangkok-Chiang Mai rail link, and the Singapore Kunming rail link. China is expected to continue to play a crucial role in the railway industry in times to come.

TagsChinese Standard Bullet Train, China Railway Corporation, high-speed rail, High Speed Rail Diplomacy, ASEAN