Baoji-Lanzhou high-speed railway goes into operation

A 401-km long high-speed railway linking Baoji in northwest China's Shaanxi Province and Lanzhou in neighboring Gansu Province is now operational.

Passengers waiting to board the first bullet train service running the Baoji-Lanzhou high-speed railway at the Baoji South Station, Shaanxi Province, July 9, 2017. [Photo: China Plus]

It's the first high-speed line running along China’s Silk Road Economic Belt, and connects the provinces of Gansu and Qinghai, and Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, with 8 stops along the way.

A train attendant ready to welcome passengers on board the first bullet train service to run on the Baoji-Lanzhou high-speed railway at the Baoji South Station, Shaanxi Province, July 9, 2017. [Photo: China Plus]

The new line integrates China's northwest into the rapidly developing China National "Eight Vertical and Eight Horizontal" high speed railway network.

A display heralding the launch of the Baoji-Lanzhou high-speed railway service at the Baoji South Station in Shaanxi Province, July 9, 2017. [Photo: China Plus]

Boasting a designated speed of 250 kilometers per hour, the railway cuts the current travelling time from Baoji to Lanzhou from the current seven hours to around two hours.

Designed to accommodate extreme weather conditions, the high-speed train is high-temperature, high-humidity, sand, wind and UV resistant.