China Railway Pilots Advance Ticket Booking for Over 200 Trains on Key Routes

China Railway will pilot a new advance ticket reservation service for over 200 trains operating on the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed and conventional railway lines, effective July 20. This initiative aims to provide passengers with more flexibility in planning their travel and to allow the railway operator to better manage capacity and demand.

The new system enables passengers to submit reservation requests between 60 and 17 days prior to a train's departure. The railway's 12306 system will then process these requests between 20 and 16 days before the travel date. During an initial transition period from July 20 to August 29, the service will cover tickets for departures on or after September 15. From August 30 onwards, the system will operate normally, accepting reservations for travel 60 to 17 days in advance.

The introduction of advance booking is seen as a measure to enhance the passenger experience and optimize the allocation of railway resources. By capturing advance demand, the operator can more scientifically configure train schedules and ticket availability, aiming for a better balance between supply and demand. This is expected to lead to a more equitable distribution of tickets and cater to individual travel needs.

Currently, the service is limited to individual travelers and does not support group bookings of more than 19 people. Passengers can submit their requests through the "Reservation" section of the official Railway 12306 mobile application. The service offers two booking modes: "exact" and "flexible."

In "exact" mode, passengers can select specific departure and arrival times, seat types, and prices. The "flexible" mode allows passengers to specify broader criteria, such as desired departure time windows, total travel duration, and seat preferences. Each 12306 account can hold up to three pending reservation orders simultaneously. An order can include up to three "exact" and two "flexible" reservations across a maximum of two consecutive days, with a limit of 19 passengers per order. Users are required to specify the priority of their chosen reservations.