China now boasts the world's fastest bullet trains. The domestically developed train running between Beijing and Shanghai, called the Fuxing, on Wednesday increased its speed to a whopping 350 kilometers per hour. Our reporter Yang Chengxi traveled on the route this morning.
YANG CHENGXI SHANGHAI "This is the Fuxing series bullet train. Today it is raising its speed from a previous 300 kilometer per hour to 350, which means, I can get from Shanghai to Beijing in four an a half hours. Let's go."
There's a reason why the Shanghai-Beijing rail line is first in line nationwide for the speed raise. The inter-city high speed rail has carried some 630 million passengers in the past six years.
YANG CHENGXI SHANGHAI "With 500 thousand people traveling between the two cities each day , this is currently the most busy rail line in China, in part due to the huge travel needs from business people in two of the country's most commercially developed metropolises."
CRISTIAN BUSINESSMAN "350 is just much better. I think we can get to Beijing much faster. It really helps with us. I think we travel quite a lot between Shanghai and Beijing for business really in the next years, and it is so much more convenient than flying."
The Fuxing train is made for business trips compared to previous models. Not only are there bigger spaces, less noise, but there's also something that business people would love to have.
YANG CHENGXI SHANGHAI "Wifi! No only are there fast wireless internet for the entirety of the trip, but there are also power sockets so your devices never run out of juice. I can really get some work done during the commute!"
MR. SONG BUSINESSMAN "I think there are many advantages in taking the bullet train. It's punctual, it's safe. It can let us use WIFI. This is a vey good news because we have a lot of things to deal with and work arrangements to coordinate on the road."
Safety is a huge consideration as the speed goes up. The Fuxing is the first high-speed train with all proprietary Chinese design and it can seamlessly communicate with the control center and coordinate with all other trains on the same line, even ones that are different models.
YANG CHENGXI SHANGHAI "So here we are. I left Shanghai in the morning and I'm now in Beijing at 1:30 in the PM sharp. With the speed raise this is no doubt going to be a very attractive travel option. YCX CGTN from Shanghai to Beijing."