China has ordered an “urgent” overhaul of rail safety, state media said Sunday, after 43 people were killed in the worst accident ever to hit the country’s high-speed train network.
The collision of two trains in eastern China is likely to raise fresh questions over the rapid roll-out of the country’s high-speed lines, the world’s biggest at more than 8,000 kilometres (5,000 miles). The government moved swiftly to ease public concern, sacking three senior officials at the Shanghai railway bureau and launching an “urgent overhaul” of national rail safety, official news agency Xinhua said.
Hundreds of millions of Chinese depend on the country’s railways and any problems generate tremendous public interest in a country where, despite a three-decade economic boom, air travel remains beyond the means of most people. A new $33 billion high-speed link between Beijing and Shanghai opened to passengers amid much fanfare on June 30 — a year ahead of schedule — but has suffered power cuts and delays, prompting criticism on blogs and in the media.
An initial investigation into Saturday’s crash in Shuangyu, on the outskirts of the eastern city of Wenzhou, blamed “equipment failure caused by lightning strike”, the railway ministry said in a statement.
