From 7 to 9 December, Beijing is hosting the UIC World Congress on High Speed Rail, UIC HIGHSPEED 2010. This is the carefully chosen moment for the Chinese Railways to enter the exclusive club of the world’s chosen few: those privileged railways to have achieved high speed train records of 486 km/hr during test runs. It is against this backdrop that a lunch was held on 5 December between Jean-Pierre Loubinoux and the Vice-Minister of Chinese Railways Mr Wang.

The Chinese Railways expressed their pride at being the first outside Europe to host an event of such international scope, paying particular attention to the preparation and the calibre of speakers and guests. It was also the occasion for them to express their intention to play a more significant role in UIC and a more active part in the development of high speed in the world. This will be made possible via the UIC platforms and technical forums, in particular the Rail System Forum, where the Chinese Railways will play a large role in the Steering Committee. For its part, UIC congratulated the Chinese Railways for their achievement and swiftness in building their high speed network. UIC is prepared to help them meet their many future challenges, notably in the areas of maintenance, operations and day-to-day safety issues. In return, UIC expects MoR to play its part in helping UIC assume a genuinely international role.

More information on UIC HIGHSPEED 2010 in the next edition of UIC eNews.