About the author

AJ Benton

January 5, 2026 | Metros

Planning starts on Hong Kong metro extension

South Island Line will be extended by 7.5km.

December 29, 2025 | High-speed

Chinese high-speed network exceeds 50,000km

Several new high-speed lines have opened in China in recent days while construction is getting underway on a multitude of new lines and upgrades. AJ Benton rounds up the major highlights.

December 24, 2025 | Metros

Flurry of Chinese metro openings planned

More than a dozen new metro lines and extensions are set to open in cities across China at the end of the year. AJ Benton rounds up the major additions.

December 12, 2025 | Metros

Dongguan metro Line 1 opens

Initial phase of city’s second metro line extends for 57km serving 25 stations.

December 4, 2025 | Asia

China introduces new fast freight service

Passenger EMUs are being used to transport parcels and other urgent items between Wuhan and Guangzhou overnight.

December 3, 2025 | High-speed

High-speed projects make progress in China

Panzhou - Xingyi line opens as testing starts on other projects.

December 1, 2025 | Freight

New timetable for China - Europe freight services

Seven new routes added to bring total train movements to over 1000 a year.

November 19, 2025 | Freight

King Coal prepares to lose his crown in China

China currently moves huge amounts of coal by rail, much of it on dedicated heavy-haul lines. AJ Benton profiles the key routes, noting that the gradual shift to net zero means that the heyday of coal moving by rail is likely to already be in the past.

October 23, 2025 | Asia

Chinese high-speed trains set new world record

Two CR450 trains have achieved a passing speed of 896km/h during trials.

October 20, 2025 | Passenger

Doing things by numbers China’s ticketing journey

Hosting the world’s largest digital rail ticketing platform, China is at the forefront of providing a burgeoning portfolio of online travel services. AJ Benton charts the transformation from paper to e-tickets and surveys the wide range of fares available.

« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 Next »

Rail market intelligence to unlock your business potential.

Sign up for the IRJ Rail Brief Newsletter