On October 17, inside the carriages of the high speed CRH train on the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway, passengers were using their mobile phones to capture the electronic display indicating the train’s speed exceeding 350 kilometers per hour. Photo by Xu Qin, Xinhua News Agency.
In recent days, China and Serbia have signed two road construction agreements worth nearly 4 billion euros and a contract to purchase five high speed trains. This marks China’s high speed rail’s first European export order. The opening of the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway and the signing of the first high speed rail export order in Europe with Serbia have put Chinese high speed rail in the spotlight on the international stage.
“We will have Chinese high speed trains.”
Recently, “Chinese high speed trains” have become a topic of interest for many foreign media outlets. The inauguration of the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway, often regarded as the “first export of Chinese high speed trains to the world,” the signing of the first high speed train export contract to Serbia in Europe, and the general interest expressed by multiple countries during the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation have all drawn widespread attention to Chinese high speed trains as they expand from domestic operations to international prominence.
According to Singapore’s Lianhe Zaobao, on October 17 at 4:35 pm, the G1137 train left Jakarta’s Halim Railway Station in Indonesia, officially inaugurating the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway. The train can reach a top speed of 350 kilometers per hour, making the 46-minute journey between the two cities a reality. This brings Indonesia into the era of high speed trains and marks a significant achievement for Indonesia and China in their cooperation within the “Belt and Road” Initiative (BRI). Indonesian President Joko Widodo stated that the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway is a symbol of an efficient, friendly, and integrated mass transit system, as well as a symbol of Indonesia’s modernization.
The Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported that the Serbian Ministry of Transport recently stated that China and Serbia have signed two road construction agreements worth nearly 4 billion euros and a contract to purchase five high speed trains. The Serbian Minister of Transport said, “We will spend 54 million euros to receive five trains, which means we will have Chinese high speed trains that will run on the Hungary-Serbia Railway.” This is the first time China’s high speed rail has received an export order for Europe, according to reports.
Sattima, a reporter from the Salvadoran Daily attending the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, expressed her admiration, stating, “The convenience of China’s high speed rail is beyond imagination. China’s high speed trains are very fast, and ticket prices are cheap. I hope to report more on China’s booming technological development.”
The Bangkok Post in Thailand reported that the development of the country’s railway transport system is a priority in the government’s 20-year development plan (2018-2037), with the China-Thailand High Speed Railway project being a highlight. The Thailand section of the China-Thailand High Speed Railway is divided into two phases, one in south and the other in north. The first phase, the southern one, stretching from the capital Bangkok to Nakhon Ratchasima, a key town in the northeast, with a distance of approximately 250 kilometers with six stations, is expected to open in 2026. The second phase, from Nakhon Ratchasima to Nong Khai, will connect with the China-Laos Railway, ultimately linking Kunming, China.
“There’s a lot to learn from China.”
“China’s success in infrastructure development is increasingly going global, thanks to the BRI,” said Hussein Askary, Vice-Chairman of the Belt & Road Institute in Sweden (BRIX), in an article.
Many foreign media outlets have been closely watching China’s rapid expansion of its high speed rail networks abroad. This expansion has been facilitated by its extensive domestic market, mature experience in high speed rail construction, and globally leading high speed rail manufacturing technology.
The recent opening of the Fuzhou-Xiamen-Zhangzhou High Speed Railway was reported by America’s Cable News Network (CNN). According to the report, the 277-kilometer coastal high speed railway, with a top speed of 350 kilometers per hour, was opened before the golden week of the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays. The train connects the two mountainous cities of Fuzhou and Xiamen in Fujian province, significantly reducing travel time to less than one hour. It features 84 bridges, 29 tunnels, and even a 20-kilometer-long rail section over the sea, utilizing smart robots and high-strength, environmentally friendly, corrosion-resistant steel for construction. This achievement led many American social media users to express their admiration, with comments such as, “China always manages to amaze,” “This shows that Chinese technology is continually advancing,” and “China is the future.”
The Aju Business Daily of Korea reports that the Chinese high speed rail network is underpinned by a rapidly improving road infrastructure and robust basic facilities, making travel more convenient and efficient with the opening of new high speed rail routes, air routes, and expressways, facilitating the travel of Chinese people.
David Dodwell, the CEO of Strategic Access, an American consulting firm, wrote in the media that since China opened its first high speed rail line between Beijing and Tianjin with a designed speed of 350 kilometers per hour in 2008, China has constructed over 40,000 kilometers of high speed railway, revolutionizing the way its citizens travel. The large scale of China’s high speed rail development, its stable long-term planning, and the modular, standardized approach to project execution have boosted efficiency and enhanced the international competitiveness of Chinese enterprises. Dodwell concluded that “there is much the world can learn from China in infrastructure development.”
“It’s a symbol of seeking improvement with innovation.”
Yu Hong, a senior researcher at the East Asian Institute of the National University of Singapore, highlights that the core of the BRI is connectivity, and China boasts some of the world’s best railway infrastructure. Since the inception of the BRI in 2013, railway construction has consistently been a significant agenda item.
When Chinese high speed rail ventures abroad, what does it mean to the world? Foreign media outlets, through their analysis of projects like the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway, have recognized the catalytic role that China’s high speed rail construction plays in boosting local economic development.
The Jakarta Post in Indonesia recently featured a special report on the contribution of the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway to modernizing Indonesia’s rail system. The project has created 51,000 job opportunities in the area. Even more importantly, Chinese workers have shared their knowledge and skills with their Indonesian counterparts through various means, including the establishment of training institutions and on-site mentoring. This extensive training program has benefited around 45,000 Indonesian workers, imparting skills in welding, electrical work, machinery operation, concrete pouring, and other technical fields.
Interesting Engineering, an American technology media outlet, lauded the Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway for its notable use of electric trains that produce zero direct carbon emissions, aligning perfectly with Indonesia’s ongoing decarbonization efforts. Beyond providing a swift and eco-friendly commuting option, the railway also enhances economic connectivity between Indonesia and China. As high speed rail networks expand, the region is poised for improved transport links, catalyzing significant economic growth. The Jakarta-Bandung High Speed Railway project serves as a symbol of Indonesia’s commitment to embracing modernization and innovation for progress.
The Bangkok Post in Thailand emphasized that “once all high speed rail projects are fully completed and interconnected, they will constitute a vast railway transportation network for passengers and cargo, connecting China, Malaysia, Laos, and Thailand.” The China-Thailand High Speed Railway project, with its broad scope, is expected to drive Thailand’s evolution into a logistics hub for Southeast Asia, significantly contributing to the comprehensive completion of the middle section of the Trans-Asian Railway.
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