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City's new station opens as biggest rail hub in China
By Wu Huixin |
July 10, 2013, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
CHINA'S largest railway hub opened in Hangzhou last week - it's so big that some travelers say they get lost in it.
Fortunately, local volunteer teams of college students are helping passengers find their way around the Hangzhou East Railway Station, a five-level, 340,000-square-meter behemoth that in total is almost twice the size of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The main body of the station is 39.6 meters high.
Hangzhou's government spent 12 billion yuan (US$2 billion) to build the station, which opened on July 1 after five years of construction. City officials expect the station to serve an average of 30,000 passengers a day.
The station connects to high-speed rail, ordinary rail, subway, maglev train, bus and water transport, allowing virtually seamless transfers between most modes of transportation.
The station also has a tourist center, a highway passenger depot, and the Grand Canal Wharf outside the railway station allows travelers to experience a Hangzhou-style water bus.
Shortened trip
The station is even being used to reshape the city - local officials spent 23 billion yuan in the development of the surrounding 9.3-square-kilometer area, aiming at forging a new landmark that integrates service and tourism industries with residences.
Inside the station, the ground floor has platforms for trains and the second floor is the waiting hall.
There are three basement levels. The first one down is for transfers, where travelers can take taxis, with the second the platform for Metro Line 1 and the third for the under-construction Metro Line 4.
The station is expected to ease traveling between Hangzhou and Ningbo, Beijing, Nanjing, Huzhou, Shanghai and other cities.
"Hangzhou's high-speed railway construction is developing from a line into a net. The citywide effect of the Hangzhou East Railway Station is huge, genuinely bringing Hangzhou into the high-speed rail era," said Li Zhonghua, vice president of Zhejiang Provincial Railway Investment Group Co Ltd, a builder of the high-speed rail system.
The trip to Ningbo once required a two-hour, 62-yuan bus trip. Now there is a high-speed train bound for Ningbo every 15 minutes, and the trip takes only an hour. The economy-class ticket is 73.5 yuan.
Flying to Beijing on a discounted ticket can cost 650 yuan to 850 yuan, and full fare during heavy travel days can be 1,300 yuan. While the flight is only about two-and-a-half hours, it can take over an hour to get to Xiaoshan International Airport. The high-speed train to Beijing takes about six hours at a cost of 538.5 yuan for economy.
The travel time to Nanjing has dropped from three hours to an hour and 20 minutes and the high-speed rail economy ticket is 117.5 yuan, 2.5 yuan cheaper than the bus fare was.
There are now 10 high-speed trains leaving every day for Huzhou, a trip that takes 25 minutes and costs 32.5 yuan for economy.
Builders also took care to ensure that Hangzhou's new status as a railway hub would not damage historic sites or the environment.
"When we designed the railway line, we avoided the Liangzhu Culture Relics and Tiammu Mountain Scenic Area intentionally, putting emphasis on environment protection and conservation of water and soil," said Guo Zhiyong, chief engineer of Nanjing-Hangzhou-Ningbo high-speed railway.
Back at the station, builders also made sure there were plenty of creature comforts.
In the waiting hall, yellow sockets on the ground can be used to charge passengers' phones or other devices, and drinking water and boiled water are provided.
The second-floor commercial area is dotted with cafes, fast food restaurants and dessert shops, and there are stores selling Longjing tea, Heaven umbrellas and other traditional Hangzhou cuisines and folk products.
Waiting passengers also may visit the Train Impression Pavilion, where they can have photos made with high-speed and old locomotive backgrounds for 25 yuan each.
Fortunately, local volunteer teams of college students are helping passengers find their way around the Hangzhou East Railway Station, a five-level, 340,000-square-meter behemoth that in total is almost twice the size of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The main body of the station is 39.6 meters high.
Hangzhou's government spent 12 billion yuan (US$2 billion) to build the station, which opened on July 1 after five years of construction. City officials expect the station to serve an average of 30,000 passengers a day.
The station connects to high-speed rail, ordinary rail, subway, maglev train, bus and water transport, allowing virtually seamless transfers between most modes of transportation.
The station also has a tourist center, a highway passenger depot, and the Grand Canal Wharf outside the railway station allows travelers to experience a Hangzhou-style water bus.
Shortened trip
The station is even being used to reshape the city - local officials spent 23 billion yuan in the development of the surrounding 9.3-square-kilometer area, aiming at forging a new landmark that integrates service and tourism industries with residences.
Inside the station, the ground floor has platforms for trains and the second floor is the waiting hall.
There are three basement levels. The first one down is for transfers, where travelers can take taxis, with the second the platform for Metro Line 1 and the third for the under-construction Metro Line 4.
The station is expected to ease traveling between Hangzhou and Ningbo, Beijing, Nanjing, Huzhou, Shanghai and other cities.
"Hangzhou's high-speed railway construction is developing from a line into a net. The citywide effect of the Hangzhou East Railway Station is huge, genuinely bringing Hangzhou into the high-speed rail era," said Li Zhonghua, vice president of Zhejiang Provincial Railway Investment Group Co Ltd, a builder of the high-speed rail system.
The trip to Ningbo once required a two-hour, 62-yuan bus trip. Now there is a high-speed train bound for Ningbo every 15 minutes, and the trip takes only an hour. The economy-class ticket is 73.5 yuan.
Flying to Beijing on a discounted ticket can cost 650 yuan to 850 yuan, and full fare during heavy travel days can be 1,300 yuan. While the flight is only about two-and-a-half hours, it can take over an hour to get to Xiaoshan International Airport. The high-speed train to Beijing takes about six hours at a cost of 538.5 yuan for economy.
The travel time to Nanjing has dropped from three hours to an hour and 20 minutes and the high-speed rail economy ticket is 117.5 yuan, 2.5 yuan cheaper than the bus fare was.
There are now 10 high-speed trains leaving every day for Huzhou, a trip that takes 25 minutes and costs 32.5 yuan for economy.
Builders also took care to ensure that Hangzhou's new status as a railway hub would not damage historic sites or the environment.
"When we designed the railway line, we avoided the Liangzhu Culture Relics and Tiammu Mountain Scenic Area intentionally, putting emphasis on environment protection and conservation of water and soil," said Guo Zhiyong, chief engineer of Nanjing-Hangzhou-Ningbo high-speed railway.
Back at the station, builders also made sure there were plenty of creature comforts.
In the waiting hall, yellow sockets on the ground can be used to charge passengers' phones or other devices, and drinking water and boiled water are provided.
The second-floor commercial area is dotted with cafes, fast food restaurants and dessert shops, and there are stores selling Longjing tea, Heaven umbrellas and other traditional Hangzhou cuisines and folk products.
Waiting passengers also may visit the Train Impression Pavilion, where they can have photos made with high-speed and old locomotive backgrounds for 25 yuan each.
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