China plans to build 42 high-speed railway lines by 2012 in a massive system overhaul that is part of efforts to spur economic growth amid the global downturn, state media have reported. China hopes to have added 13,000 kilometres (8,060 miles) of fast lines to its massive rail network in three years, the China News Service said Wednesday, citing Zhang Shuguang, deputy chief engineer at the railways ministry.
The tracks would be capable of handling trains running at up to 350 kilometres per hour, the report cited Zhang as telling a science conference in the south-western city of Chongqing. The country would then have four north-south and four east-west high-speed rail arteries across its vast territory, the report said.
Construction on the third east-west artery has already started and will link up with the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail line, which is due to become operational next year, in the eastern city of Nanjing, it said. The new tracks would mean the travel time from Beijing to the central hub city of Wuhan would be more than halved to around four hours, it added. The country has developed a "major breakthrough" that will enable high-speed trains to run on both fast and normal-speed tracks, Zhang said, according to Wednesday's Chongqing Times.