The Ningbo–Taizhou–Wenzhou railway or Yong-Tai-Wen railway () 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 ...

, high-speed rail line in

Zhejiang Province Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiangs ...

, China. It is named after the three

prefecture-level cities A prefecture-level city () or prefectural city is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China (PRC), ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure. During the Republican era, many of China' ...

along route:

Ningbo Ningbo (; Ningbonese: ''gnin² poq⁷'' , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly romanized as Ningpo, is a major sub-provincial city in northeast Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. It comprises 6 urban districts, 2 sate ...

, whose abbreviated Chinese name is ''Yong'', Taizhou and

Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou �y33–11 tɕiɤu33–32 ), historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province in the People's Republic of China. Wenzhou is located at the extreme south east o ...

. The line has a total length of 282.4 kilometres and forms part of China's

Southeast Coast high-speed rail corridor The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

. Construction began in October 2005, and the line opened to commercial service on September 28, 2009. Trains running on the line reach top speeds of 250 kilometres per hour, and the shortest trip between Ningbo and Wenzhou takes 1 hour 12 minutes.

Route

The Ningbo–Taizhou–Wenzhou railway follows the rugged but prosperous coast of Zhejiang. Major cities and towns along route include

Fenghua Fenghua (; ) is a district of the city of Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China. The district and its administrative hinterlands has a population of over 480,000. Fenghua is most famous for being the hometown of former Presidents Chiang Kai-shek an ...

Ninghai Ninghai County () is a county under the administration of Ningbo, in the east of Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. It covers a land area of and a sea area of and has a coastline. It has four sub-districts, 11 towns, three townsh ...

, Sanmen,

Linhai Linhai (; Tai-chow dialect: Lin-he) is a county-level city in Taizhou, Zhejiang Province situated on the banks of the Lin River in Eastern China. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,114,146 inhabitants even though its built-up (''or met ...

, Taizhou,

Huangyan ( Tai-chow dialect: Wông-ngæn K'ü; ) is a district of Taizhou, a city in Zhejiang Province, China. Huangyan has an area of and a population of approximately 570,000. It has an average annual precipitation of and an annual average temperatur ...

Luqiao Luqiao District (; Tai-chow dialect: Lu-giao K'ü) is a district of Taizhou in Zhejiang Province, People's Republic of China. The district has an area of and a population of approximately 425,200. Luqiao District was established in 1994, havin ...

Wenling Wenling ( Wenling dialect: Ueng-ling Zy ; ) is a coastal county-level city in the municipal region of Taizhou, in southeastern Zhejiang province, China. It borders Luqiao and Huangyan to the north, Yuhuan to the south, Yueqing to the west, looks ...

Yueqing Yueqing () is a county-level city under the administration of Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, in eastern China. It lies on the coast of the East China Sea, by the Yueqing Bay. Much of the Yandang Mountains lie in Yueqing. History China's ancient ( ...

, Yongjia, and

Ouhai Ouhai District () is a district of Wenzhou, Zhejiang. It is an outlying district of Wenzhou urban area (). It has a population of 386,000 and occupies . Administrative divisions Twelve subdistricts: * Louqiao Subdistrict (), Xinqiao Subdistrict ...

. At Ningbo, the line joins the Xiaoshan–Ningbo railway and the Hangzhou–Ningbo passenger-dedicated line. At Wenzhou, the line joins the

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 th ...

History

The Ningbo–Taizhou–Wenzhou railway is the first railway to be built on the east coast of Zhejiang. 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 building 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 the ...

, 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., th ...

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 s ...

eased in the late 1990s did planning of the Yongtaiwen Line proceed. Construction began commenced in 2005 and track-laying was completed on May 15, 2009. Commercial service began on September 28, 2009.

Accident

On 23 July 2011,

CRH CRH may refer to: * Calibre radius head, a traditional British ordnance term for a concept in ballistic projectile design * Celtic Resources Holdings, an Irish mining company * China Railway High-speed, a high-speed railway service operated by Chin ...

train D3115, running from

Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whi ...

to Fuzhou South came to a halt over a viaduct near Wenzhou South after losing its power. Shortly afterwards, CRH train D301, running from Beijing South to

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 t ...

, rear-ended the stationary D3115. The accident led to 35 deaths and 211 injured, raising concerns about the safety of the fast-expanding high-speed railway network of China.

Rail connections

Xiaoshan–Ningbo railway The Xiaoshan–Ningbo railway or Xiaoyong railway (), is a double-track railroad in eastern China between Hangzhou and Ningbo in Zhejiang Province. Its name in Chinese, the Xiaoyong Line, is named after the railway's two terminal stations, Xiaos ...

, Jinhua–Wenzhou railway

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ningbo-Taizhou-Wenzhou Railway Railway lines in China Rail transport in Zhejiang Transport in Ningbo Taizhou, Zhejiang Transport in Wenzhou

Route

History

Accident

Rail connections

See also

References