World's first smart high-speed railway tracks completed

The Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed railway, partly constructed by POWERCHINA's subsidiary Sinohydro Bureau 7 Co, completed the track-laying construction on June 12, which will lay a solid foundation for tests and adjustment in September and commercial operation at the end of this year.

Linking Beijing North Railway Station and Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, the railway is 174 kilometers long. Sinohydro Bureau 7 Co is responsible for the No 8 section, which stretches 33.38 kilometers from Gujiaying town of Zhangjiakou's Xuanhua district to Laoyazhuang town of Qiaodong district, passing through Houjiamiao village, Hezixi village, and Yaojiazhuang town.

The No 8 section consists of 11 sections of roads, 12 bridges, and two tunnels, spanning complicated topography and geomorphology such as downtown areas, existing railways, expressways, and even sensitive military areas. The 7.34-km Caomao Mountain tunnel features the maximum depth of 109 meters and 3,005 meters of Grade V surrounding rock, accounting for 41 percent of the total length of the tunning, making it a high-risk project.

Sinohydro Bureau 7 Co has adopted multiple modern technologies, including cloud computing, the Internet of Things, big data, and mobile internet, into the project. The application of new technologies such as the facial recognition system, QR code recognition, video surveillance system, and sprinkler system highlights the Beijing-Zhangjiakou railway as the world's first smart high-speed railway.

Currently, the No 8 section has finished the main construction, the side slope ancillary project, and afforestation, with the project clearing in progress and documents for project completion under collection.

The Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed railway is being hailed as a demonstration of a smart high-speed railway project that applies the most advanced Chinese railway technology. It is also a key infrastructure project for promoting the integrated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. It is also part of the Beijing-Lanzhou Passageway, as well as an important project for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.

In addition, the railway is the first high-speed service of its kind built in an arctic-alpine and windy area, with a maximum speed of 350 km/h. Upon completion, it will shorten the trip between Beijing and Zhangjiakou from three hours to less than one hour. Connecting with the Hohhot-Zhangjiakou high-speed rail line and the Datong-Zhangjiakou High-speed Railway, it is also of great strategic significance for linking the western areas.