China's railway fixed-asset investment reached 601.2 billion yuan (about 90 billion U.S. dollars) in the first three quarters of the year, up 1.3 percent year on year, the railway operator said on Wednesday.
During the period, 1,625 kilometers of new rail lines were put into operation. A batch of new lines and stations opened across northern, central and southwestern China, according to the China State Railway Group.
The projects include the Xiong'an-Shangqiu section of the Beijing-Hong Kong high-speed railway, the Xi'an-Ankang section of the Xi'an-Chongqing high-speed railway, the Yichang-Xingshan high-speed railway, and the Harbin-Yichun high-speed railway.
The move has further optimized the regional network layout, enhanced overall transport efficiency, facilitated public travel, and injected strong momentum into industrial upgrading and resource development along the routes.
Progress was also made on key projects spanning the country's eastern, southern and western regions, the railway operator said.
Joint commissioning and testing are underway on the Huaibei-Suzhou-Bengbu intercity railway, the Yulin North-Cenxi East section of the Nanning-Zhuhai high-speed railway, and the Jinan link of the Tianjin-Weifang high-speed railway.
Track-laying has been completed on the Chongqing-Wanzhou high-speed railway as it enters the static acceptance phase, and has begun on the Shanghai-Nanjing section of the Shanghai-Nanjing-Hefei high-speed railway.
Meanwhile, the Zhujiashan tunnel, a key control project on the Xi'an-Chongqing high-speed railway, was successfully bored through.
Railway construction investment, featuring a long industrial chain, broad spillover effects, and a strong driving force, has injected new momentum into China's economic and social development.
China's railway fixed-asset investment reaches over 600 bln yuan in Q1-Q3
As China marks the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March, a roughly 12,500-kilometer military odyssey, German writer Christian Y. Schmidt shared his and fellow author Volker Haering's extraordinary cycling journey retracing the the historic route with local audiences in Germany.
The Long March (1934-1936) was a military maneuver by the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army that later became a defining episode in modern Chinese history, symbolizing endurance and perseverance as troops crossed some of the country's harshest terrain to establish a new revolutionary base. Some marched as far as 12,500 kilometers, enduring hunger, thirst and cold.
Schmidt and his friend, fellow writer Haering spent 138 days between 2023 and 2024, cycling nearly 7,000 kilometers along the historic route of the Chinese Red Army, starting from Ruijin County in east China's Jiangxi Province and heading northwest.
Their experiences have been compiled into a book titled "Der lange Fahrrad-Marsch: 7.000 Kilometer durch das Reich der Mitte".
Last week, Schmidt shared extraordinary journey with audiences at the Confucius Institute at Dusseldorf, drawing engagement from local attendees seeking fresh perspectives on Chinese modern history.
"I think we can take away an inspiration from this: As long as you keep moving forward, never give up, and always keep your eyes fixed on your goal, you will surely be able to keep going. And if you encounter difficulties along the way, you just have to find ways to overcome them," said Schmidt.
The presentation prompted reflections on endurance and modern development among the German audience.
"Mao Zedong once said, 'Nothing is impossible in the world if you dare to scale the heights.' I think this is precisely the spirit demonstrated during the Long March. Who could have imagined that after enduring such hardship, victory could still be achieved in the end? I think that is the lesson we can draw from it. In a sense, the memory of the Long March seems deeply etched into the genes of future generations," said Kneppel, an attendee.
"China's development is indeed nothing short of a miracle. China has achieved astonishing leaps in technological development. Driven by the government, China displays tremendous vitality, focus, and purposeful effort. The Chinese government unites people from all over the country to march toward the exact same goal, and I have witnessed this with my own eyes," said Maria, another attendee.
German writer shares 7,000 km Long March cycling journey with audiences
