In the mountains and mountains of northwest Hunan Province, the Guizhou-Zhangzhou-Changzhou Railway is like a silver ribbon, shuttling through Zhangjiajie, Changde and other places, bringing unprecedented traffic changes to this land. However, since its inception, the railway has been plagued by many controversies and incomprehensions, the most notable of which is its design speed of 200 km/h and whether it has enough room to increase speed.
First of all, we must admit that the 200 km/h speed of the Guizhou-Zhangzhou-Changzhou Railway, as a passenger and freight railway line, was already a relatively reasonable choice at that time. It can not only meet the basic travel needs of passengers, but also take into account the needs of cargo transportation, and realize the dual consideration of economic and social benefits. However, with the passage of time, especially when the high-speed rail network is becoming more developed and people's requirements for travel speed are getting higher and higher, the speed of the Guizhou-Zhangzhou-Changzhou railway seems to be a bit stretched.
Especially compared with the 300 km/h high-speed railway line that may be built in Jishou and other places, the "slowness" of the Guizhou-Zhangchang railway seems to have become an original sin. But in fact, speed is not the only measure of the value of a railway. The completion of the Guizhou-Zhangzhou-Changzhou Railway has not only greatly shortened the time and space distance between Zhangjiajie, Changde and other cities and the outside world, but also injected new vitality into the economic development of these areas. Especially for tourist destinations like Zhangjiajie, the accessibility of the railway has undoubtedly brought more tourists and business opportunities.
However, when we look back at the planning process of the Guizhou-Zhangzhou-Changzhou railway, we also have to face a reality: at the beginning of the design of the railway, it may have overemphasized its dual-use attributes for passengers and goods, and ignored the possibility of future speed-up. Nowadays, with the continuous improvement of people's speed requirements, the problem of limited speed space of the Guizhou-Zhangzhou-Changzhou Railway has become increasingly prominent. This makes people wonder: if we had reserved more room for acceleration in the original planning, would we have avoided today's embarrassing situation?
Of course, history has no ifs. But we can learn a lesson from the story of the Guizhou-Zhangzhou-Changzhou Railway: in the process of railway construction, we must not only consider the actual needs of the present, but also take into account the future development trend; It is necessary not only to pursue economic benefits, but also to take into account social benefits; It is necessary not only to meet people's travel needs, but also to consider the balanced development of the region.
Recently, with the continuous growth of GDP and population in cities such as Zhangjiajie and Changde, the demand for higher quality and higher efficiency transportation has become increasingly urgent. This may be a new requirement for the future development of the Guizhou-Zhangzhou-Changzhou Railway, and it is also a new challenge to the transportation construction of the entire northwest Hunan region.