The government’s website has published details of a report by the Xinhua-run Economic Information Daily saying that construction will begin on 2,100km of new rail line, 2,500km of double-track lines and 4,000km of electrified railways this year.
To achieve the targets, China Railway Corporation (CRC) has been assigned a budget of 800bn yuan by the central government, the same as in 2016.
The government had already announced plans to invest 3.5 trillion yuan on railway construction during the current Five-Year Plan period, running from 2016 to 2020.
By 2020, China aims to have 30,000km of high-speed railways in operation, connecting more than 80% of its big cities.
By the end of 2016, China had a 124,000km railway network, including more than 22,000km of high-speed lines.
Much of this year’s construction projects will happen in China’s central and western regions, to support a poverty-relief campaign.
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