Shanxi province is a vital rail hub in North China with a high speed railway network currently under construction. There are many north-south and east-west railways running across the province, including the Shijiazhuang-Taiyuan Railway, Beijing-Baotou Railway and Datong-Qinhuangdao Railway, which connect most of the big and medium-sized cities.
The opening of the Beijing-Shijiazhuang High-Speed Railway has brought Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi province, within a two-hour train journey from Beijing for the first time. The Beijing-Shijiazhuang Railway will also connect with the Wuhan-Guangzhou and Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong railways which are currently under construction. Once the Shijiazhuang-Taiyuan Railway is joined with the Beijing-Shijiazhuang Railway, Shanxi will strengthen ties with cities around the Bohai Sea Rim area, central China and the Pearl River Delta region.