High-speed Rail in Yunnan

Several high-speed rail projects have served Yunnan. In recent years, dramatic changes have taken place in railway traffic in Yunnan. The operating mileage of Kunming railway bureau has increased from more than 2,000 km in 2012 to more than 3,700 km at the end of 2016. Several high-speed railway lines, including Shanghai-Kunming, Nanning-Kunming, Kunming-Yuxi, Kunming-Dali have been put into operation. 

High Speed Railway in Service

Shanghai-Kunming High Speed Railway

The high-speed Shanghai–Kunming Passenger Dedicated Line, completed in 2015, short the travel time between Shanghai and Kunming from 37 hours to less than nine hours. This line follows the same route as the existing Shanghai–Kunming Railway from Shanghai on the East China Sea to Kunming via Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hunan, Guizhou, and Yunnan province, passing through the major cities of Hangzhou, Nanchang and Changsha. The cross-country line is part of a nationwide rail upgrade that has allocated 500 million yuan (US$73.2 million) in funds for Yunnan province alone. 

Nanning-Kunming High Speed Railway

Nanning–Kunming high-speed railway (formerly known as the Yunnan–Guangxi high-speed railway) is a high-speed railway connecting Nanning and Kunming, respectively the capitals of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Regionand Yunnan Province. It has cut the rail travel duration between the two cities from 12 hours to 4.5 hours. Their operation has included Kunming into the China high speed railway network for the first time. Stations along the way includes Nanning East, Nanning, Nanning West, Long’an East, Pingguo, Tiandong North, Tianyang, Baise, Funing, Guangnanxian, Puzhehei, Mile, Shilin West, Kunming South.

Kunming-Yuxi High Speed Railway

The Kunming–Yuxi railway or Kunyu railway, is a single-track railroad in Yunnan Province of Southwest China. The line runs 55.5 km (34 mi) from Kunming to Yuxi and was built from 1989 to 1993. Bridges and tunnels account for 22% of the total length of the line. As the Yuxi–Mengzi railway and Mengzi–Hekou railway were constructed in the 21st century, the Kunming–Yuxi railway became the first section of the Kunming–Yuxi–Hekou railway, the modern standard-gauge replacement for the old narrow-gaugeKunming–Hekou railway. The major upgrade project of Kunming–Yuxi railway is started in 2010, and completed in 2016. The EMU train entered to operation from December 29, 2016.

Kunming-Dali High Speed Railway

Kunming to Dali high-speed train officially started operation on July 1^st,  a new high-speed rail line linking the China’s popular tourist cities – Kunming & Dali, which cut travelling time from six hours (regular train) to only two hours. There are more than 20 pairs of high speed trains from Kunming to Dali everyday with an average interval of 25 minutes. With a speed of 200 km/h, the fastest running time is about 112 minutes. The main stops are Chuxiong, Nanhua, Xiangyun, etc.

Planed High Speed Railway

Chengdu-Kunming High Speed Railway

Chengdu-Kunming high speed railway, being an important line of the Eights Orizontal Railways of China, passes Qujing, Zhaotong, Yiliang, Yanjin and enters Sichuan province. After the completion, the travel time between Chengdu and Kunming will be shortened from the current 18 hours to 4 hours. The full length of the line is 176 km, and the designed speed is 350 km/h. The construction period is 4 years and it is expected to open in 2022.

Mile-Mengzi Railway High Speed Railway

On May 30, the Mile-Mengzi Railway in Yunnan Province officially started construction. Upon it is completed, people will be able to travel between Kunming and Mengzi in just two hours. The main railway line stretches for 107 kilometres and is designed with a speed of 250 kilometres per hour. The construction period is expected to last six years. It is an important part of the southwest China’s outbound channel to Vietnam and other ASEAN states.

China-Thailand High Speed Railway

China-Thailand Railway, or Sino-Thai Railway has began its construction  in December, 2017. About 4 years are needed to complete this high speed rail project, by when it will run through three countries including China, Laos and Thailand. It will serve trains running between Kunming and Bangkok. In the far future, this China-Thailand railway project will be extended all the way to Singapore, shaping a high speed railway as long as 1,864 miles (3,000 km), namely Kunming – Singapore Railway.

Dali-Ruili High Speed Railway

The Dali-Ruili Railway, currently under construction in China’s Yunnan Province, will include the world’s longest span bridge, the Nujiang Four-Line Bridge stretching nearly 3,400 feet, and the Gaoligong Mountain Rail Tunnel, Asia’s longest at 21.4 miles. will form the western portion of China’s rail link with Southeast Asia, part of the Trans-Asian Railway, and is expected to be connected with the railways of Myanmar. It is expected to open in 2021.

Chongqing-Kunming High Speed Railway

The Chongqing-Kunming High-Speed railway project has passed the examination and approval, and it’s expected to start construction in 2018. The construction from Chongqing to Yibin section will take 4 years, and the section from Yibin to Yunnan is 6 years. By then, only 2.5 hours will be needed to travel between those cities. According to the plan, the length of the railway line is about 718 kilometers, of which the Chongqing section occupies about 118 kilometers, with design speed of 350 kilometers. Its route is: Chongqing Downtown City – Jiangjin – Yongchuan – luzhou – Yibin – Zhaotong – Kunming.