Plan aims for 150,000 km of rail by 2020

Updated: 2016-06-30 07:49

By HU YONGQI/ZHANG YUE(China Daily)

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China set forth new goals on Wednesday for a long-term, more comprehensive plan for the country's rail network, including 150,000 kilometers of rail lines by 2020.

The plan was approved at a State Council meeting that was presided over by Premier Li Keqiang.

It endorses rail as the country's key form of transportation and the lifeline for China's economy.

The plan also calls for more balanced rail construction to increase accessibility to more of the country, and it vows to build a comprehensive network combining rail, road, water and air transportation.

"It is still a pressing task for us to usher in the development of China's railway. It is the lifeline for China's national economy," Li said.

Compared with developed countries of a similar size, the length of China's operating railways is still not long enough, the premier said. Railway construction is important for stabilizing economic growth and structural reform, especially in central and western China, he added.

By the end of last year, China had 121,000 km of operating rail lines, including 19,000 km of high-speed railways, according to the National Development and Reform Commission.

In 2008, the NDRC issued a national rail plan that aimed for an operating rail network of more than 120,000 km by 2020.

The plan approved on Wednesday is a revision of the 2008 plan and targets a network of 150,000 km by 2020. Of this, 30,000 km will be high-speed rail.

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