On April 26 the Fuzhou-Xiamen High-speed Railway officially opened.

The bullet train, with a speed of 250 km reduces the travel time from Fuzhou, capital of Fujian province, to Xiamen, located on the coast looking out over the Taiwan Straits, to 1.5 hours, and is hoped to boost business ties between Fujian and Taiwan.

Director of the Information Office of Fujian Zhu Qing said: "Xiamen Island and the Yangtze and Pearl river deltas can be connected. In addition, the construction of the railway will make communication easier between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan."

The new railway is a part of the long-term planning of the railway network of China. It will connect with the Ningbo-Taizhou-Wenzhou and Wenzhou-Fuzhou high-speed railways, opened in 2009 and will also link with Nanzhang-Putian, Shanghai-Hangzhou, and Xiamen-Shenzhen railways, which are still under construction.

These railways form a triangular railway network between southeast China's coastal cities and cover a total mileage of 1,650 km.

Invested by Ministry of Railways and Fujian provincial government, the Fuzhou-Xiamen railway alone covers 275 km and has 13 stations in total.

Zhu explained: "In ancient times, Fujian was located on the war front, which negatively affected the economic well-being of people there. I hope the building of the Fuzhou-Xiamen High-speed Railway will ease access between mainlanders and Taiwanese."

Tong Yongzhao, deputy director of Nanchang Railway Bureau, noted: "The Fujian High-speed Railway helps to increase the level of industrialization and urbanization, providing efficient transportation for the society of the west coast, which boosts economic development of Fujian and inland China."

Fujian Tourism Department has introduced a special tourist route for Taiwan tourists to travel in Fujian and to take the bullet train to the Shanghai Expo.

This not only connects Taiwan tourists with their place of origin, Fujian, but also gives them an opportunity to experience the bullet train, as well as the Shanghai Expo.

(China Daily 05/27/2010 page16)