The Fuzhou–Xiamen railway or Fuxia railway (;

Foochow Romanized Foochow Romanized, also known as Bàng-uâ-cê (BUC for short; ) or Hók-ciŭ-uâ Lò̤-mā-cê (), is a Latin alphabet for the Fuzhou dialect of Eastern Min adopted in the middle of the 19th century by Western missionaries. It had varied at d ...

: ''Hók-â Tʰiā-le̤'') is a dual-track,

electrified Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic history ...

, higher-speed rail line in eastern

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

. The line is named after its two terminal cities

Fuzhou Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian province, China. Along with the many counties of Ningde, those of Fuzhou are considered to constitute ...

and

Xiamen Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong' ...

, both coastal cities in

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...

. The line has a total length of and forms part of China's Hangzhou–Fuzhou–Shenzhen passenger-dedicated railway. Construction began in 2005, and the line entered into operation on April 26, 2010. The line is used for both passenger and freight operations. Trains running on the line reached top speeds of , although that was later reduced to .

Route

The Fuzhou–Xiamen railway follows the rugged but prosperous coast of Fujian with 14 stations between Fuzhou South Station and Xiamen Station including

Fuqing (; Foochow Romanized: Hók-chiăng; also romanized as Hokchia) is a county-level city of Fujian Province, China, it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Fuzhou. Geography Fuqing is located in the north-central par ...

, Hanjiang,

Putian Putian or Putien (, Putian dialect: ''Pó-chéng''), also known as Puyang (莆阳) and Puxian (莆仙), historically known as Xinghua or Hing Hwa (), is a prefecture-level city in eastern Fujian province, China. It borders Fuzhou City to the no ...

, Xianyou,

Quanzhou Quanzhou, alternatively known as Chinchew, is a prefecture-level port city on the north bank of the Jin River, beside the Taiwan Strait in southern Fujian, China. It is Fujian's largest metropolitan region, with an area of and a popul ...

, Jinjiang, Xiamen North, Xinglin and Xiamen Gaoqi. Bridges and tunnels account for over 37% of the line's total length.

History

The Fuzhou–Xiamen railway is the first railway between Fujian's two important most cities, Fuzhou, the provincial capital, and Xiamen, the province's most prosperous city. Most high-speed rail lines in China follow the routes of older conventional railroads, but there were no railways on the southeast coast prior to the introduction of high-speed rail. Historically, the southeast coastal region relied on maritime transportation, and rugged terrain made railway construction more expensive. In the first half of the 20th century, warfare and political instability delayed railway construction. During the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...

, the southeast coast faced the threat of invasion from

Republic of China on Taiwan Republic of China on Taiwan () is a political term as well as discourse regarding the present status of the Republic of China. It is proposed by former President of the Republic of China Lee Teng-hui, the first locally-born president (i.e., t ...

and all railways were built inland. Only when political tensions across the

Taiwan Strait The Taiwan Strait is a -wide strait separating the island of Taiwan and continental Asia. The strait is part of the South China Sea and connects to the East China Sea to the north. The narrowest part is wide. The Taiwan Strait is itself a ...

eased in the late 1990s did planning of the Fuzhou–Xiamen railway take place. The project was approved by the State Council in July 2004. Construction began in September 2005 and was completed in December 2009. Commercial operation began on April 26, 2010. Unlike later Chinese high-speed rail lines which were built to higher speed standards of , the Fuzhou–Xiamen line was built to the standard with the capacity for upgrade to . The opening of high-speed rail line greatly reduced travel times by rail on the coast of Fujian. Passenger train service on the line average . The trip from Fuzhou to Xiamen on the non-stop express train takes 1 hr. 28 min. compared to the 10-hour train ride via railroads that cut inland. The trip by long-distance bus on the express highway takes 2.5 to 4 hours. In the first year of operation from 2010 to 2011, the line carried over 18 million passengers, averaging 50,000 per day, and reported occupancy rates exceeding 100%.

Competitiveness

Occupancy rate on the Fuxia line is among the highest of China's high-speed railways. The line offers competitive fares and passes through large cities with well-developed public transportation and high demand for intercity travel. As of February 2011, a regular ticket from Fuzhou to Xiamen costs ¥85, and a first class ticket costs ¥103. Drivers making the same trip by express highway will pay ¥300-400 including gas and tolls, and spend 1.5 more hours on the road. During the

Chinese New Year Chinese New Year is the festival that celebrates the beginning of a new year on the traditional lunisolar and solar Chinese calendar. In Chinese and other East Asian cultures, the festival is commonly referred to as the Spring Festival () a ...

, the peak season for intercity travel, the number of long distance bus trips between Fuzhou and Xiamen fell from 98 per day in 2010 to just 7 per day in 2011. Long distance bus ridership from Fuzhou to Xiamen fell by 83%, to Quanzhou by 63%, to Jinjiang by 50%, to Shishi by 25% and to Putian by 38%. In August 2015, it was announced that a parallel passenger-dedicated line (resulting in journey time savings) would be built between Fuzhou and Zhangzhou on account of the existing line having reached its capacity.

Rail connections

Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway The Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway, also known as the Wenfu railway, () is a dual-track, electrified, high-speed rail line running between Wenzhou in Zhejiang and Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian. The line has a total length of and forms part of the ...

, Nanping–Fuzhou railway, Xiangtang–Putian railway *

: Xiangtang–Putian railway *

Zhangping–Quanzhou–Xiaocuo railway The Zhangping–Quanzhou–Xiaocuo railway (), also known as the Zhangquanxiao railway, is a regional railway in Fujian Province, China. The line runs eastward from Zhangping, in the interior, to Quanzhou, on the coast, and terminates at the Xi ...

Xingguo–Quanzhou railway The Xingguo–Quanzhou railway or Xingquan railway () is a single-track railway line in China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by popul ...

: Longyan–Xiamen railway,

Xiamen–Shenzhen railway The Xiamen–Shenzhen railway, also known as the Xiashen railway, () is a dual-track, electrified, high-speed rail line connecting the major coastal cities of Xiamen in Fujian and Shenzhen in Guangdong. The line has a total length of and form ...

Future Development

As of 2015, passenger services on the line were approaching capacity. To increase capacity and improve travel times between Fujian Province's two largest cities, plans were announced in 2015 for the construction of a new parallel passenger dedicated railway called the

Fuzhou–Xiamen high-speed railway The Fuzhou–Xiamen high-speed railway will run between Fuzhou, Xiamen and Zhangzhou in Fujian Province, China. History In 2015, it was announced that a second high-speed railway line between Fuzhou, Xiamen and Zhangzhou would be constructed, as ...

. Construction of this new railway started in 2017 and will roughly follow the existing Fuzhou–Xiamen railway, but will support a higher maximum speed of 350 km/h, further reducing travel times between the two cities to below one hour. Opening of the new line is scheduled for 2022.

References