China to crack down on safety threats to Beijing-Shanghai high speed train

China will launch a two-month crackdown on illegal activities that may pose a threat to operational safety of the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail that will commence service soon, the State Administration of Work Safety said.

The campaign, which will be conducted in June and July, aims to eliminate safety risks to prevent traffic accidents for the high-speed line due to begin commercial service soon, the administration said in a circular on its website.

The crackdown targets the production, processing, storage and sale of hazardous products in areas within 200 meters from the tracks and rail stations.

Mining and quarry businesses and blasting operations will also be eliminated in areas within 1,000 meters of the rail.

China has decided to slow the speed of high-speed trains to 300 kilometers per hour instead of the previously planned 350 km per hour for cost and safety concerns, Railways Minister Sheng Guangzu said in April.

Trains on the 1,318-kilometer-long Beijing-Shanghai high-speed line will run at a maximum of 300 km per hour, which will cut travel time between the two metropolises to about five hours, according to the ministry.

The Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail line began a one-month trial operation on May 11.

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