Nanjing-Hangzhou Intercity High-Speed Rail to Open End of 2012

Due to the "7.23" incident (the train accident that happened outside of Wenzhou last July), the construction on the new intercity rail between Nanjing and Hangzhou was slowed down. The Nanjing-Hangzhou intercity rail was originally scheduled to open at the end of 2011. According to Yu Qingzhong, the head of the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Transportation, the new intercity rail is now projected to open at the end of 2012 instead, and will still boast a top speed of 350 km per hour. The Nanjing-Hangzhou Intercity High-Speed Rail runs a total length of 248 km (147 km in Jiangsu province), and stops at a total of 11 stations. Six of the stations are located in Jiangsu Province -- (Nanjing South Station (南京南站), Jiangning Station (江宁站), Lishui Station (溧水站), Liyang Station (溧阳站), Xinyixing Station (新宜兴站), Dingshu Station (丁蜀站) -- and five of the stations are located in Zhejiang Province -- Xinchangxing Station (新长兴站), Huzhou South Station  (湖州南站), Deqing Station (德清站), Yuhang Station (余杭站) and Hangzhou East Station (杭州东站).

At present, passengers travelling by train from Nanjing to Hangzhou must pass through Shanghai – a detour that increases the travel time for most ordinary trains to between 5-10 hours (the fastest train, the D5589, takes 4 hours and 14 minutes). Once the Nanjing-Hangzhou Intercity High-Speed Rail is opened, travel time between the two cities will be shrunk to under an hour. 

See also: Travelling From Hangzhou to Nanjing? Why Not Ride an Express Bus!