In 1936, the Yuehan Railway General Workshop (the predecessor of CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive Co., Ltd.) was established in the Tianxin area of Zhuzhou, Hunan Province, sowing the seeds of the nation's locomotive and rolling stock industry. In 1952, the "August 1st" (Bayi)-the first steam locomotive manufactured by the People's Republic of China-rolled off the production line and entered service. In 1958, the country successfully developed its first mainline diesel locomotive and first electric locomotive. Subway trains were successfully developed in the 1960s.
In 2004, the former Ministry of Railways issued the *Key Technical Policies for Railways*, a document regarded as marking the beginning of China's high-speed rail era. Subsequently, the industry progressed from the introduction, digestion, and absorption of foreign technology-followed by re-innovation-to achieving fully independent innovation. In 2010, the domestically developed CRH380A electric multiple unit (EMU) rolled off the production line.
In 2017, the "Fuxing" (Rejuvenation) series-China's standard EMU featuring fully independent intellectual property rights-entered service, marking the localization of key technologies. In 2021, the world's first high-speed maglev transportation system designed for a speed of 600 km/h rolled off the production line. In 2023, the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway in Indonesia commenced operations, marking the first time a complete Chinese high-speed rail system-encompassing all elements and the entire industry chain-was exported overseas.
By the end of 2023, the total operating mileage of China's high-speed rail network had reached 45,000 kilometers, with approximately 80% of the "eight vertical and eight horizontal" main corridors completed. By the same time, the operating mileage of urban rail transit systems had surpassed 10,000 kilometers, reaching 10,165.7 kilometers.
