Guangzhou–Foshan–Zhaoqing intercity railway, also known as Guangfozhao intercity railway or Foshan–Zhaoqing intercity railway, is a

regional railway In the United States, a regional railroad is a railroad company that is not Class I, but still has a substantial amount of traffic or trackage (and is thus not a short line). The Association of American Railroads (AAR) has defined the lower bound ...

within

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

province,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. It connects the provincial capital of

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

with

Zhaoqing Zhaoqing (), alternately romanized as Shiuhing, is a prefecture-level city in Guangdong Province, China. As of the 2020 census, its population was 4,113,594, with 1,553,109 living in the built-up (or metro) area made of Duanzhou, Dinghu a ...

, via

Foshan Foshan (, ), alternately romanized as Fatshan, is a prefecture-level city in central Guangdong Province, China. The entire prefecture covers and had a population of 9,498,863 as of the 2020 census. The city is part of the western side of the ...

. It is a part of the

Pearl River Delta Metropolitan Region intercity railway The Pearl River Delta Metropolitan Region Intercity Railway System (, abbreviated as PRDIR) is a regional higher-speed rail and suburban rail network being gradually constructed in the Pearl River Delta ( Yuegang'ao Greater Bay Area), People's R ...

network. It commenced operations on March 30, 2016.

Overview

From Guangzhou to Foshan, the line is long, and it continues for another to Zhaoqing. Between Guangzhou and Foshan, the line has a westerly heading. From

Foshan West railway station Foshan West railway station is a major railway station located in Nanhai District, Foshan, Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South C ...

, the line continues west through Shishan Town in

Nanhai District Nanhai District (), is a District (PRC and ROC), district of Foshan, Guangdong, China. Its government is the first to have developed e-government informatization at the county level in China. History Establishment of Nanhai is traditionally at ...

, across Shishan Industrial Park, over the

Guangzhou–Zhuhai railway Guangzhou–Zhuhai railway () is a railway between () in Guangzhou and () in Zhuhai, via the cities of Foshan and Jiangmen, in Guangdong, China. Opened at the end of 2012, it is currently used for freight only. Role Until the 21st century, Zhu ...

and entering

Sanshui District Sanshui District, formerly romanized as Samshui, is an urban district of the prefecture-level city of Foshan in Guangdong province, China. It had a population of 622,645 as of the 2010 census. It is known for the "Samsui women", emigrants who lab ...

. The line then crosses the

Bei River Bei River (北江; literally "The North River"; pinyin: ''Běi Jiāng''; wade-giles: ''Pei3 Chiang1''; jyutping: ''Bak1 Gong1'', literally "North River") is the northern tributary of the Pearl River in southern China. The other two main tribu ...

and passes through the Zhaoqing High-tech Industrial Development Zone. The line then turns southwest, crossing the Sui river, the

Guangzhou–Maoming Railway The Guangzhou–Maoming railway or Guangmao railway (), is a railroad in Guangdong Province of China between Guangzhou, the provincial capital, and Maoming. The line has a total length of and comprises the Guangzhou–Sanshui railway (Guangsa ...

and State Road 321, and passes through

Dinghu District Dinghu District () is a district of Zhaoqing, Guangdong province, People's Republic of China. Administrative divisions See also * Dinghu Mountain Dinghu Mountain and Lake () is located in Dinghu District, 18 km to the east of Zhaoqing ...

before reaching

. The line has 19 stations, 8 between Guangzhou and Foshan, and 11 between Foshan and Zhaoqing. The line is connected to the Guiyang–Guangzhou high-speed railway and the

Nanning–Guangzhou high-speed railway The Nanning–Guangzhou high-speed railway (), abbreviated as Nan–Guang railway (), connects Nanning, capital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong Province, in China. Construction started on November 9, 2008; N ...

. The operational speed on the line is .

History

Construction of the Foshan and Sanshui segments of the line started on September 29, 2009 and June 18, 2010 respectively. As of April 20, 2011, the planned terminus was tentatively set at Dachong railway station. On March 8, 2012 the line was renamed from "Foshan–Zhaoqing intercity railway" to "Guangzhou–Zhaoqing intercity railway". Plans for the line were also revised, extending the line to Guangzhou South railway station. In July 2012, the plans were revised yet again, with the line being extended to

Zhaoqing railway station Zhaoqing railway station () serves the city of Zhaoqing, Guangdong province, China. The station hosts train services to and from Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Kunming, Nanning, Hainan, and other parts of China. The station is an intermediate stop on the ...

. The route for this section was determined by September 2012. Construction of the Dachong elevated viaduct started on December 18, 2012, and construction of the Guangzhou-Foshan segment of the line started in 2013. The line commenced operations on March 30, 2016. On 10 April 2021, service patterns were changed and through running between Zhaoqing and

Shenzhen Airport Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport (formerly Shenzhen Huangtian Airport) is the airport serving Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. It is located on the east bank of the Pearl River near Huangtian and Fuyong villages in Bao'an District, and is ...

was introduced.

Stations

* The line shares tracks with the Guangfo Circular & Foguan intercity railways between

Panyu Panyu, alternately romanized as Punyu, is one of 11 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province, China. It was a separate county-level city before its incorporation into modern Guangzhou in 200 ...

and Foshan West.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guangzhou-Foshan-Zhaoqing intercity railway Pearl River Delta Rapid transit in China High-speed railway lines in China Rail transport in Guangdong Railway lines opened in 2016