China Buys 80 Very High Speed Trains (236 mph) for $4 Billion

Michael Graham Richard
Transportation / Cars
September 29, 2009

Photo: BombardierSee also: Warren Buffett Makes a $44 Billion (!) Bet on Trains, Buys BNSFWhat's the US Doing?The Chinese Ministry of Railways has announced that it will buy 80 "very high speed trains" from Bombardier's Chinese joint ventre Bombardier Sifang to add to China's fast-growing network of high-speed rail. The ZEFIRO 380 trains are both very efficient (more on that below) and very fast, and should help make transportation in China greener, especially if train trips displace plane trips. Photo: BombardierThat's a Lot of Railroad CarsThe order is for 20 eight-car trainsets and 60 sixteen-car trainsets, for a total of 1,120 cars.

The ZEFIRO 380 has a maximum operating speed of 380 kilometers per hour (236 miles per hour) and is designed for efficiency:

The ZEFIRO 380 trainsets will also incorporate Bombardier's advanced ECO4 energy saving technologies to create best-in-class energy and operating efficiencies. Bombardier launched its ECO4 technology package in 2008 as part of an ongoing focus to extend rail's position as the most sustainable form of transportation in the world. Bombardier is first in the industry to create a new formula for total train performance with a portfolio that can create substantial overall energy savings of up to 50%.

More about ECO4 here.

Photo: Bombardier$300 Billion to be Invested in High-Speed Rail Through 2020The contract is estimated at 27.4 billion Chinese Renminbis ($4 billion US, 2.7 billion euros). But this is only part of it. As Alex recently wrote, "China is investing over $300 billion in high-speed rail through 2020, in a bid to speed ahead of the rest of the world's train systems."

Photo: BombardierHigh Speed Rail in North-AmericaThis announcement is just another reminder that we need a high-speed rail system in North-America. It might not make sense everywhere, but there are many major cities that could certainly benefit from modern high-speed train links.