Chinese trains are divided into various classes, identified with different letters and numbers. Passenger trains are numbered by a capital Chinese phonetic letter followed by numerals.
D train, for examaple, D59, is the fastest train among all the others. This type is also called Hexiehao (和谐号, Harmony) or bullet trains in China. The designed top speed is 250km/h. They have been widely used for serving fast and frequent transport between main cities, such as Beijing-Shanghai, Shanghai-Suzhou and Shenzhen-Guangzhou.
4-number train, for example,1487, is the slowest green body train, having as many stops as possible. . Most of them don't have air-condition at all..
K train, for example, K49, is a fast train with zolfe orange body. This series with a top speed of 120km/h has more stops than the T ones. They are equipped with air-condition and the four classes of berths.
T Train and N Train, for example, T 87 is a super-fast train or express train. This kind has limited stops on the routes, mainly in these major cities. The highest speed is 140km/h. Almost every T-series is equipped with soft-sleeper, soft-seat, hard-sleeper and hard-seat.
Z train, for example, Z19, is a non-stoppable super fast train. This type with a top speed of 160km/h is also a efficient transport for long-distance travel. Generally, they have none-stop on the way, but some have several stops. On the other hand, some are equipped with only soft-sleepers and soft-seats.
C train, for example, C2001, is used to refer to Beijing Tianjin Inter-city Trains only.
Y train, for example, Y563, is for the convenience of tourist and their destinations are the popular sights. For example, there are EMU Y-trains departing from Beijing North Railway Station to suburban Yanqing County, which is a transfer station to Badaling Great Wall.
L train, for exampe, L11, also known as temporary train, is added temporarily to meet the increasing traffic demand during the holidays such as the National Day hodiday, Spring Festival and etc. It is not advised to take this type if you have other options as they are routinely subject to delays.
G train is the fastest running for long distance in China, the top speed of which could reach 350km/h. Currently, the G-train could finish the 1,068-kilometers Wuhan-Guangzhou High-Speed Railway in 3 hours, the 301-kilometers Shanghai-Nanjing High-Speed Railway in 73 minutes and the 458-kilometers Zhengzhou-Xian High-Speed Railway in 2 hours.