At midnight on October 11, China’s railway network put its fourth-quarter timetable of 2026 into service. More than 13,000 passenger trains now run each day, and the changes are less about speed records than about fitting trains to the way people actually travel.
The clearest example is the Shanghai-Hangzhou corridor. The new plan adds seven commuter trains for the morning and evening peaks, five outbound and two back. One of them leaves Shanghai Hongqiao at 8:25, stops at Jiaxing South at 8:52 and reaches Hangzhou at 9:24, which is close to a standard nine o’clock start. Across the Yangtze River Delta, passenger services now total 1,435.5 pairs, a record high, and freight services 1,383 pairs, also a record.
Freight gets as much attention as passengers. The plan adds cross-bureau freight trains and speeds up cold-chain services. A refrigerated train running from Haikou to Changsha North now makes the trip in 25 hours and 24 minutes, keeping tropical produce fresh on the way north. Faster, steadier freight is one of the quieter ways a timetable lowers costs for the whole economy.
Some cities gain whole new connections. Meizhou now has direct high-speed service to Zhanjiang, and Foshan adds trains to Wuhan, Shanghai and Beijing West. Yiwu station, the largest county-level station in Zhejiang, now runs 272 passenger trains a day instead of 226, after its rebuild added a third set of platforms.
Railway officials remind travellers that times and stops have shifted, and suggest checking the 12306 app before setting out. Freight customers can use channel 95306. For anyone planning a trip this autumn, the new timetable is worth a look before the tickets are booked.
Words to know:
- timetable (时刻表，运行图)
- commuter (通勤者)
- corridor (通道，沿线地带)
- peak (高峰)
- freight (货运)
- cold-chain (冷链)
- refrigerated (冷藏的)
- rebuild (改建，重建)
长难句拆解 · which 非限制性定语从句 + 现在分词伴随
例句：One of them leaves Shanghai Hongqiao at 8:25, stops at Jiaxing South at 8:52 and reaches Hangzhou at 9:24, which is close to a standard nine o’clock start.
这句话的主干是三个并列谓语：leaves、stops、reaches，共用同一个主语 One of them，指代前面提到的七列通勤列车中的一列。三个动作各带自己的时间状语，形成一条清晰的时间线，读的时候按顺序往下捋即可。
逗号后的 which is close to a standard nine o’clock start 是非限制性定语从句。这里的 which 指代的不是某一个名词，而是前面整串事实——「8 时 25 分出发、9 时 24 分到达」这趟车的用时安排。判断技巧：which 前面有逗号，且从句谓语是 is，说明在补充评价前面这件事。作者借这一句点出「几乎正好卡在九点上班前」，把枯燥的时刻表翻译成了通勤者的体感。
直译：其中一列 8 时 25 分从上海虹桥出发，8 时 52 分经停嘉兴南，9 时 24 分到达杭州，几乎正好卡在九点上班前。
再看一句：A refrigerated train running from Haikou to Changsha North now makes the trip in 25 hours and 24 minutes, keeping tropical produce fresh on the way north.
主语是 A refrigerated train，running from Haikou to Changsha North 是现在分词短语作后置定语，说明这列车的运行区间，等于 which runs from Haikou to Changsha North。句尾的 keeping tropical produce fresh 是现在分词短语作伴随状语，补充说明「25 小时 24 分」这个速度带来的结果，其中 keep + 宾语 + 形容词表示「使某物保持某种状态」。
直译：一列从海口开往长沙北的冷藏车，如今全程最快 25 小时 24 分，让热带果蔬在北上途中保持新鲜。
同义替换 · 雅思阅读利器
下面 7 组替换都出自本文，右侧是对应的替换说法，点开核对。
- put its fourth-quarter timetable of 2026 into service → began using its new timetable for the last three months（实施新运行图的同义改写）
- adds seven commuter trains → introduces seven extra trains for daily travellers（增开通勤列车的替换表达）
- a record high → the highest level ever reached（创新高的同义说法）
- speeds up cold-chain services → makes refrigerated transport faster（冷链提速的改写）
- gain whole new connections → get completely new places to travel to（获得新通达方向的替换）
- now runs 272 passenger trains a day → operates 272 passenger trains daily at present（日常开行列数的改写）
- worth a look → deserves attention（值得一看的同义表达）
阅读自测 · 3 题
三道题分别对应数字、细节与结论，先不看答案。
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- 简答：How many commuter trains does the new plan add for the Shanghai-Hangzhou corridor?
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- 判断正误（T / F / NG）：The refrigerated train from Haikou to Changsha North now makes the trip in 25 hours and 24 minutes.
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- 判断正误（T / F / NG）：The passage says the timetable change is mainly about breaking speed records.
参考答案与解析
每题给出答案与判断依据，注意最后提到的干扰项套路。
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- Seven. 依据在第二段。原文写 The new plan adds seven commuter trains for the morning and evening peaks，问的是增开数量，答案就是七列。题干若问「早晚各几列」，则要分开答 five outbound and two back，只答 seven 会漏掉细节层次。
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- T（正确）。第三段写 A refrigerated train running from Haikou to Changsha North now makes the trip in 25 hours and 24 minutes，与题干完全一致，属于原文照录。这类数字题要特别留意单位是小时还是分钟，别把 25 hours 看成 25 minutes。
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- F（错误）。第一段明确说 the changes are less about speed records than about fitting trains to the way people actually travel，作者认为重点不在破纪录，而在贴合真实出行节奏。题干把「不在于」换成「主要在于」，属典型的「反调正写」。
中文译文
10 月 11 日零时起，全国铁路实施 2026 年第四季度列车运行图。如今每天开行的旅客列车超过 1.3 万列，而这次调整的重点并不在于刷新速度纪录，而在于让列车更贴合人们真实的出行节奏。
最清楚的例子是沪杭沿线。新图增开七列早晚高峰通勤列车，早间五列、晚间两列。其中一列 8 时 25 分从上海虹桥出发，8 时 52 分经停嘉兴南，9 时 24 分到达杭州，几乎正好卡在九点上班前。长三角地区旅客列车开行总数达到 1435.5 对，创历史新高；货物列车 1383 对，同样创下新高。
货运受到的关注不亚于客运。新图增开了跨局货物班列，并给冷链班列提速。一列从海口开往长沙北的冷藏车，如今全程最快 25 小时 24 分，让热带果蔬在北上途中保持新鲜。更快更稳的货运，是一张时刻表为整个经济降低成本的低调方式。
一些城市因此获得了全新的通达方向。梅州到湛江实现高铁直达，佛山增开了去往武汉、上海和北京西的列车。浙江最大的县级火车站义乌站，在改建增加第三个车场后，日常办客列车从 226 列增加到 272 列。
铁路部门提醒旅客，部分车次时刻和停靠站已有调整，出行前可通过 12306 客户端查询；货运客户可拨打 95306 了解相关信息。对打算今秋出行的人来说，订票之前值得先看一眼新运行图。