Login
or
Register
Home
»
Trains Magazine
»
Forums
»
General Discussion
»
High Speed Rail proponents take note: THIS is the right way to develop a HSR project
Edit topic
Updated your discussion topic below.
Subject
Enter a subject for your topic. Maximum 150 characters.
Post Body
Enter your post below.
From the TRAINS Newswire for 12/05/05: <br /> <br />------------------------------------------------------------------- <br /> <br />Beijing backs plan for silk railroad link to Europe <br /> <br />BEJING - Work has begun on a high-speed rail link that is expected to rejuvenate the ancient Silk Road trade route between East and West, according to a story in The Australian, one of that country’s national newspapers. The 2,500-mile rail link to the western borders of Kazakhstan will become the fastest land route between Asia and Europe. <br /> <br />When completed in 2010, the $5 billion Iron Silk Road project will take freight, and eventually passengers, from China to Europe via Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran, and Turkey in just 10 days, its proponents say. The Eurasia Land Bridge will also strengthen China's hand as it battles with Russia and the U.S. for influence in Central Asia. <br /> <br />Looking at a map of the world, the railway seems logical enough. Kazakhstan sits at Central Asia’s very heart, a huge expanse of flat desert and grassland stretching all the way from China to the Caspian Sea. <br /> <br />"Building here is easy; you won't see a mountain for hundreds of kilometres," said Kanat Zhangaskin, vice-president of Kazakhstan's national railway company. "It makes perfect sense to reopen this ancient trade route." <br /> <br />At the moment, most of the estimated $280 billion of goods traded between China and Europe is transported by sea, which usually takes 40 days, or on the Trans-Siberian railway, which takes 15 days. The Chinese government is trying to move manufacturing to its western hinterland to remove a dangerous income disparity with its eastern seaboard and exploit new markets in Central Asia. <br /> <br />The only snag in the plan is the route west from Kazakhstan. The favored route now is to duck south into Turkmenistan, through Iran, and into Turkey, which offers the added advantage of a potential link to the Persian Gulf. That depends to a large extent on the questionable political stability of Iran and Turkmenistan. But Zhangaskin is not deterred. He argues that Kazakhstan needs the railway for itself to transport oil and minerals to China's vast markets. <br /> <br />------------------------------------------------------- <br /> <br />Interesting, in that I have been promoting HSR predicated on moving freight first, then taking on passenger operations as the system develops. It seems the vice-president of Kazakhstan's national railway feels the same way! Freight pays the bills, e.g. subsidizes the passengers. That's how to make HSR a reality! <br />
Tags (Optional)
Tags are keywords that get attached to your post. They are used to categorize your submission and make it easier to search for. To add tags to your post type a tag into the box below and click the "Add Tag" button.
Add Tag
E-mail Subscribe
Check the box below if you want to receive e-mail notifications when replies are made to this thread.
Receive notifications
Update Discussion Topic
Join our Community!
Our community is
FREE
to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.
Login »
Register »
Search the Community
Newsletter Sign-Up
By signing up you may also receive occasional reader surveys and special offers from Trains magazine.Please view our
privacy policy
More great sites from Kalmbach Media
Terms Of Use
|
Privacy Policy
|
Copyright Policy