China State Railway Group Co., Ltd., doing business as China Railway (CR), is the national passenger and freight railroad corporation of the People's Republic of China. China Railway operates passenger and freight transport throughout China with 18 regional subsidiaries. By September 2022, the total assets of China Railway Group are CNY 9.06 trillion (USD 1.24 trillion). China has the highest railway usage in the world.

History

China Railway Corporation was established in 2013 to be responsible for railroad construction, operation, and maintenance. Under the Chinese Corporate Law, China Railway Corporation was reorganized into China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. on 18 June 2019. This meant the Ministry of Finance would act as an investor on behalf of the state and the company would be led by a board and managed by board-chosen executives. By the end of 2019, China Railway employed 2 million people and operated 139,900 km of railroads, of which 35,388 are high-speed railroads.

Logo

The China Railway logo was designed by Chen Yuchang (1912–1969), officially adopted on 22 January 1950. The whole logo represents the front of a locomotive. The upper part of the logo represents the Chinese character 人 (people), while the lower part represents the transversal surface of a rail. The logo means that China's railway belongs to the people. The lower part represents the character 工 (labour), means that China's railway belongs to the working class. The "CR" logo is used on the Fuxing (train) along with the China Railway logo. The "CRH" logo is used on the Hexie (train).

Companies

There are 21 primary subsidiary companies under China Railway. As of 2008, approximately two million people work in China Railway.

Second tier subsidiaries

Corporate affairs

Business trends

The key trends for the China Railway are (as of the financial year ending 31 December):

International operations

International trains

China Railway operates passenger trains from China to Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, North Korea, Vietnam and Laos. Also operates freight (cargo) trains to these countries. There are 11 international passenger train services:

Services to Europe (New Silk Route)

China Railway ran goods services to 15 European cities, including routes to Madrid and Hamburg and the experimental East Wind service to London to test demand. The Chinese government refers to the two-week 12000 km route, starting at Yiwu and with trains to London traversing Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany, Belgium and France, as the Belt and Road Initiative. Containers must be transferred several times, as different, incompatible, rail gauges are used in different regions, and the same rolling stock cannot be used throughout.

Africa

China has been investing in and helping to rebuild railways in Africa. Below is an incomplete list of rail projects.

List of directors general

China Railway Corporation

China State Railway Group

Chairman

General Manager

Footnotes