High-speed rail in China in the context of "Beijing–Tianjin intercity railway"

High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail transport network utilizing trains that run significantly faster than those of traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialized rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single definition or standard that applies worldwide, lines built to handle speeds of at least 250 km/h (155 mph) or upgraded lines of at least 200 km/h (125 mph) are generally considered to be high-speed.

The first high-speed rail system, the Tōkaidō Shinkansen, began operations in Honshu, Japan, in 1964. Due to the streamlined spitzer-shaped nose cone of the trains, the system also became known by its English nickname bullet train. Japan's example was followed by several European countries, initially in Italy with the Direttissima line, followed shortly thereafter by France, Germany, and Spain. Today, much of Europe has an extensive network with numerous international connections. Construction since the 21st century has led to China taking a leading role in high-speed rail. As of 2023, China's HSR network accounted for over two-thirds of the world's total.

Beijing, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's most populous national capital city, as well as China's second largest city by urban area, after Shanghai. It is located in Northern China, and is governed as a municipality under the direct administration of the State Council with 16 urban, suburban, and rural districts. Beijing is mostly surrounded by Hebei Province and neighbors Tianjin to the southeast; together, the three divisions form the Jing-Jin-Ji cluster.

Beijing is a global city and one of the world's leading centres for culture, diplomacy, politics, finance, business and economics, education, research, language, tourism, media, sport, science and technology, transportation, and art. It is home to the headquarters of most of China's largest state-owned companies and houses the largest number of Fortune Global 500 companies in the world, as well as the world's four biggest financial institutions by total assets. It is also a major hub for the national highway, expressway, railway, and high-speed rail networks. For a decade before the COVID-19 pandemic, Beijing Capital International Airport was Asia's busiest airport (2009–2019) and the second busiest airport in the world (2010–2019). In 2020, the Beijing subway was the fourth busiest and second longest in the world. Beijing Daxing International Airport, Beijing's second international airport, is the largest single-structure airport terminal in the world. The city has hosted numerous international and national sporting events, the most notable being the 2008 Summer Olympics and 2008 Summer Paralympics Games. In 2022, Beijing became the first city ever to host both the Summer and Winter Olympics, and also the Summer and Winter Paralympics.

High-speed rail (HSR) has developed in Europe as an increasingly popular and efficient means of transport. The first high-speed rail lines on the continent, built in the late 20th century, improved travel times on intra-national corridors. Since then, several countries have built extensive high-speed networks, and there are now several cross-border high-speed rail links.

As of 2025, several European countries — among them France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom — are connected to a cross-border high-speed railway network. Spain operates the largest high-speed rail network in Europe with 3,973 km (2,469 mi) and the second-largest in the world, trailing only China. High-speed rail in the region predominantly runs in Western Europe, with comparatively very few having been built in Eastern Europe.

Transport in China has experienced major growth and expansion in recent years. Although China's transport system comprises a vast network of transport nodes across its huge territory, the nodes tend to concentrate in the more economically developed coastal areas and inland cities along major rivers. The physical state and comprehensiveness of China's transport infrastructure tend to vary widely by geography. While remote, rural areas still largely depend on non-mechanized means of transport, urban areas boast a wide variety of modern options, including a maglev system connecting the city center of Shanghai with Shanghai Pudong International Airport. Airports, roads, and railway construction will provide a massive employment boost in China over the next decade.

Much of contemporary China's transport systems have been built since the establishment of the People's Republic in 1949. The railway, which is the primary mode of long distance transport, has seen rapid growth reaching 139,000 km (86,371 mi) of railway lines making it the second longest network in the world (2016). Prior to 1950, there were only 21,800 km (13,546 mi) of railway lines. The extensive rail network includes the longest and busiest HSR network in the world with 35,000 km (21,748 mi) of high-speed lines by year end 2019. While rail travel remained the most popular form of intercity transport, air travel has also experienced significant growth since the late 1990s. Major airports such as Beijing Capital International and Shanghai Pudong International being among the busiest in the world. At the end of 2017, there are some 34 metro systems in operation across China, including some of the largest and busiest subway networks in the world. Of the 12 largest metro networks in the world by length, seven are now in China. Additionally, many bus rapid transit, light rail and rapid transit lines are currently under construction, or in the planning stages across the country. The highway and road system also has gone through rapid expansion, resulting in a rapid increase of motor vehicle use throughout China. A government-led effort started in the 90s to connect the country by expressways via the National Trunk Highway System has expanded the network to about 97,000 km (60,273 mi) by the end of 2012 making China's the longest expressway network in the world.

Rail transport is an important mode of long-distance transportation in China. As of 2024, the country had more than 159,000 km (98,798 mi) of railways, the 2nd longest network in the world. By the end of 2023, China had more than 45,000 kilometres (27,962 miles) of high-speed rail (HSR), the longest HSR network in the world.

The railway sector in China is essentially operated by the central government. Almost all rail operations are handled by the China State Railway Group Company, Limited, a state-owned company created in March 2013 (as China Railway Corporation) after the dissolution of the Ministry of Railways and was converted into a joint-stock company and placed under the control of the Ministry of Finance in June 2019.

China Railway High-speed (CRH) is a high-speed rail service operated by China Railway in addition to China Railway's older Classic Rail services.

The introduction of CRH series was a major part of the sixth national railway speedup, implemented on April 18, 2007. By the end of 2020, China Railway High-speed provided service to all provinces in China, and operated just under 38,000 km (24,000 mi) passenger tracks in length, accounting for about two-thirds of the world's high-speed rail tracks in commercial service. China has revealed plans to extend the HSR to 70,000 km by year 2035. It is the world's most extensively used railway service, with 2.29 billion bullet train trips delivered in 2019 and 2.16 billion trips in 2020, bringing the total cumulative number of trips to 13 billion as of 2020.