Service will substantially cut times between Urumqi and Gansu province

China tied the far-western region of Xinjiang closer to the rest of the country on Friday, opening a high-speed rail line between its capital, Urumqi, and Lanzhou, in neighboring Gansu, nearly 1,800 kilometers away.

A bullet train departed from Lanzhou West Railway Station at 10:49 am, with female attendants in Uygur and other ethnic clothing serving 622 passengers.