A file photo shows a fast train passing through a railway station. [Photo / Xinhua]

The top economic planner issued China's latest national railway plan on July 20, with the target to operate a 175,000 km rail network by 2025.

China expects to have 38,000 km of high speed railway (HSR) by 2025, according to the plan issued by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

By 2020, China will have a 150,000 km railway network, of which about 30,000 km will be HSR, covering over 80 percent of major cities nationwide, said the NDRC.

By 2030, the inter-city rail network will have been improved, reducing the travel time between neighboring major and medium-sized cities.

The new plan also emphasized boosting rail construction in central and western areas to achieve a more balanced development among regions.

NDRC statistics show that China had an operating rail length of 121,000 km by 2015, of which 19,000 km was high-speed rail.