145-yuan for a ride: Kunming-Dali high-speed railway to open to traffic July 1

Good news! Dali is about to be linked to Kunming by bullet trains soon.

The Kunming-Chuxiong-Dali high-speed railway will officially open to traffic on July 1, 2018, according to a China Railway Kunming Group news release on June 27. Ticket prices were also announced.

Days later, Kunming and Dali citizens will be able to travel between the two cities in two hours. In fact, a recent Kunming-Dali trial ride lasted less than two hours!

The 280-kilometer railway starts at Kunming Railway Station and ends at Dali Railway Station in west Yunnan, with a designed speed of 200km/h.

Ten stations are set on the line, involving Kunming, Lufengnan, Guangtongbei, Chuxiong, Nanhua, Pupeng, Yunnanyi, Xiangyun, Dalidong, and Dali.

After the opening, the fast trains will bring more convenience to local folks and a two-hour travel network will take shape in Kunming and Dali. 

Now, let’s follow the reporters’ steps to take a closer look at the connectivity facility. 

At the exchange hall of Kunming Railway Station (Beijing Road), passengers have access to the air tickets, coach tickets and car sharing services.

The newly-renovated VIP waiting rooms aim to serve the senior, infant, sick and disabled passengers, equipped with merry-making areas for kids, nursing areas for moms, and bathrooms.

The 8-compartment CRH2 trains will be operated on the railway, with a maximum speed of 250km/h.

Get on！

Tidy interior of the train

The sound box-lunch brought by well-dressed conductors reminds us of the sunflower seeds, peanuts and purified drinking waters served on traditional trains. 

Box-lunch on the train features stewed beef, broccoli and tofu.

Since Yunnan is a plateau region, the maximum speed of the Kunming-Dali trains is limited to 200 km/h.

The Chuxiong Railway Station is decorated by an ox-head pattern on the facade. The red pattern shows local Yi people’s worship to fire.

Leaving Kunming, the reporters on a recent trial ride arrived in Dali in less than two hours. What a speed! The 4G network was available all the way. 

In-Kunming travelers can take the Dali trains either at the downtown Kunming Railway Station or at the Kunmingnan Railway Station in Chenggong. 

According our reporters’inquiry, a Kunming-Chuxiong ticket costs 71 yuan, while a Kunming-Dali ticket costs 145 yuan.

On weekdays, 29.5 pairs of trains will run between Kunming and Dali daily. And on weekends, 31.5 pairs are planned daily, with a mean interval of 25 minutes.

In the future, the Kunming-Dali railway will be extended to Shangri-La and Ruili in two directions.

Northwestwardly, the Dali-Shangri-La railway forms part of the Yunnan-Tibet railway, and the Dali-Lijiang section will open to traffic by the end of December this year. By then, the Kunming-Lijiang train trip will be cut to 3 hours!

Southwestwardly, the Dali-Ruili railway is expected to put into service on December 1, 2022, forming part the China-Myanmar Railway.

We look forward to the opening of the lines, for the railways will allow us to see the west Yunnan sights closely on a high-speed train.

By Zhu Dongran, Li Hengqiang and Wang Shixue