China is working on next-generation bullet trains with a maximum operational speed of 400 km per hour that will be ready by 2020 for markets linked to the Belt and Road Initiative, the country's top railway vehicle maker¹ said.

国内最大的轨道客车制造商称，我国正在研制新一代高铁列车，其最高运行时速达400公里，将于2020年前为“一带一路”相关市场做好准备。

"We will apply new materials in the research and production of the future high-speed trains, such as carbon fiber² and aluminum³ alloy⁴, which will help reduce weight and enhance energy efficiency," said a senior engineer at the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation.

中国铁路机车车辆公司的一位高级工程师称：“我们将使用碳纤维、铝合金等新型材料研制这种高铁列车，以帮助其减轻重量、提高能效。”

The new trains will be able to reduce per passenger energy consumption by 10% compared with high-speed trains that can run 350 km per hour.

该新型列车的人均能耗将比时速350公里的高铁列车减少10%。

Once available, by around 2020, the new trains are expected to promote regional connectivity and create new business for China and overseas economies through the Belt and Road Initiative, he added.

他还表示，2020年左右，一旦新型列车投入使用，将有望提升区域互联互通，为我国和“一带一路”沿线的海外经济体创造新的业务。

Feng Hao, a rail transportation⁵ researcher at the National Development and Reform Commission, says the 400 km/h high-speed train project would help many heavily populated countries switch from a long dependence⁶ on automobiles⁷.

国家发展和改革委员会的铁路运输研究员冯浩表示，这一时速达400公里的高铁项目，将帮助许多人口稠密的国家扭转长期依赖汽车的局面。

"Because many markets along the Belt and Road Initiative, especially in Central Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Eastern European countries, are planning to build high-speed rail lines or to upgrade their existing railway systems, they are eager to gain technological⁸ support from China to assist in daily operations, maintenance, staff training and other services," Feng says.

冯浩说道：“因为'一带一路'沿线有许多市场，尤其是中亚、东南亚、中东以及东欧各国，正计划修建高速铁路或升级现有的铁路系统，他们渴望从中国获得技术支持，在铁路日常运行、维护、员工培训和其他方面得到帮助。”