Hunan–Guangxi railway

The Hunan–Guangxi railway or Xianggui railway (simplified Chinese: 湘桂铁路; traditional Chinese: 湘桂鐵路; pinyin: xiāngguì tiělù), is a mostly electrified railroad in southern China that connects Hunan province and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The shortform name of the line, Xianggui, is named after the Chinese short names of Hunan, Xiang and Guangxi, Gui. The line runs 1,013 km (629 mi) from Hengyang in Hunan to Friendship Pass on Guangxi's border with Vietnam. Major cities along route include Hengyang, Yongzhou, Guilin, Liuzhou, Nanning, Pingxiang, and Friendship Pass.

Hunan–Guangxi railway
Liu River bridge in Liuzhou
Overview
Other name(s)	Xianggui railway
Native name	湘桂铁路
Status	Operational
Owner	China Railway
Locale	South Central China
Termini	Hengyang Friendship Pass
Stations	47
Service
Type	High-speed rail Inter-city rail Freight rail
System	China Railway High-speed (Hengyang–Liuzhou–Nanning) China Railway
Operator(s)	China Railway Guangzhou Group China Railway Nanning Group
Technical
Line length	1,013 km (629 mi)
Number of tracks	2 (Liuzhou–Nanning) 1 (remainder)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	25 kV/50 Hz AC overhead catenary
Operating speed	120 km/h (75 mph)
Route map km elev Beijing–Guangzhou railway from Zhuzhou, Fengtai Ji'an–Hengyang railway from Ji'an 0 Hengyang Beijing–Guangzhou railway to Chenzhou, Guangzhou Hengyang–Liuzhou ICR，to Liuzhou Hengyang Xiang road/rail bridge over the Xiang River 6 Hengyang West 63 Qidong North 93 Qiyang North Luoyang–Zhanjiang railway from Shaoyang, Luoyang 141 Yongzhou Yongzhou East Luoyang–Zhanjiang railway to Hezhou, Zhanjiang 175 Dong'an Guangxi Hunan 239 Quanzhou 262 Shaoshui 299 Xing'an 346 Lingchuan link to Lingchuan–Ertang freight bypass railway Guiyang–Guangzhou HSR link from Hezhou, Guangzhou South Guilin West Guiyang–Guangzhou HSR to Sanjiang South, Guiyang 356 Guilin North 362 Guilin Guilin–Haiyang railway to Daweizhen link to Lingchuan–Ertang freight bypass railway 373 Ertang 408 Yongfu 488 Luzhai Tunqiu railway from Ladong 516 Luobu 535 Liuzhou North Liu River Hengyang–Liuzhou ICR from Hengyang Guizhou–Guangxi railway from Yizhou, Guiyang 538 Liuzhou Liuzhou East 542 Liuzhou South link from Jiaozuo–Liuzhou railway 550 Jinde Liuzhou–Nanning ICR Liuzhou–Wuzhou railway to Xiangzhou, Zhaoqing Laibin–Heshan railway from Heshan 608 Laibin Hongshui River Nanning–Guangzhou HSR Nanning–Guangzhou HSR to Guigang, Guangzhou Litang–Zhanjiang railway to Guigang, Zhanjiang 673 Litang Litang–Qinzhou railway to Qinzhou 767 Yongning South ring railway to Nanning–Guangzhou HSR from Guangzhou South and Liuzhou–Nanning ICR from Liuzhou Nanning–Qinzhou railway from Qinzhou North 783 Nanning East 793 Nanning Yong River 803 Nanning South Nanning–Fangcheng railway to Fangchenggang Nanning–Kunming HSR 810 Jinjicun Nanning–Kunming railway to Kunming Nanning–Kunming HSR to Kunming South 819 Jiangxicun 828 Weiluo 841 Baguanling 848 Fusui 864 Quli 874 Daling 887 Qujiu 899 Laituan 915 Chongzuo 927 Gupo 942 Tianxi 952 Tingliang 963 Longbotun 970 Ningming 981 Kuitang 990 Xiashi 998 Shangshi 1009 Pingxiang North 1013 Pingxiang 1022 Friendship Pass China Vietnam Hanoi–Đồng Đăng railway to Hanoi km

DF7D locomotives alongside the Hunan–Guangxi railway in Guilin

History

The original single-track Xianggui Line was built in sections from 1937 to 1939 and 1950–1955.

In December 2008, construction began on a capacity-expansion project to a new pair of 723.7 km (450 mi) electrified tracks from Hengyang to Nanning, which would create a three-track line of 497.9 km (309 mi) between Hengyang and Liuzhou and a four-track line of 225.8 km (140 mi) between Liuzhou and Nanning. The expansion project was completed in December 2013. The new double-track from Hengyang to Liuzhou is called the Hengyang–Liuzhou intercity railway and the new double-track from Liuzhou to Nanning is called the Liuzhou–Nanning intercity railway.

As of May 2014, the southernmost section of the Xianggui Line, from Nanning to Pingxiang on the Vietnamese border, is undergoing capacity expansion to accommodate high-speed trains.

Passenger service

CRH380A high-speed train at Guilin

The Hunan–Guangxi railway is used by most trains traveling from Beijing, Shanghai, and other points in eastern China to Guangxi (Guilin, Nanning) and to the Vietnamese border. This includes the Beijing–Nanning–Hanoi through train.

At the end of 2013, high-speed passenger service was introduced on the Hunan–Guangxi railway as well. A direct G-series trains from Beijing makes it to Guilin in about 10.5 hours. D-series trains continue from Guilin to Nanning, taking less than 3 hours for the trip.

Rail connections

The electrified tracks of the Xianggui railway at Lingchuan County, north of Guilin, in Guangxi

• Hengyang: Beijing–Guangzhou railway
• Yongzhou: Luoyang–Zhanjiang railway
• Liuzhou: Jiaozuo–Liuzhou railway, Guizhou–Guangxi railway
• Litang Township: Litang–Zhanjiang railway, Litang–Qinzhou railway
• Nanning: Nanning–Kunming railway; branch line to Qinzhou and Beihai
• Pingxiang: Hanoi–Đồng Đăng Railway

See also

• List of railways in China