The idea for the railway was first proposed in February 1958 by then Vice-Premier and Director of the National Planning Commission, Li Fuchun, during an inspection tour of Hainan. The original proposal was for a railway that would go completely around the island. It would incorporate several railway sections that had recently been, or were about to be, reconstructed in the southwestern part of the island. In February 1960, Premier Zhou Enlai visited Hainan and created a construction blueprint. In May 1963, Li Fuchun returned to inspect Hainan. His intention was for a ten-year plan to complete the railway. This was interrupted by the Cultural Revolution, and the plan was suspended. In the summer of 1980, the State Council made the decision to speed up development and construction on Hainan Island. The Guangdong–Hainan Train Ferry was completed in December 2004, and the Hainan Western Ring Railway along the western coast of the island from Haikou to Sanya was completed in 2005. Preparation for the construction project in the eastern half of the island officially started in March 2006, with the National Development and Reform Commission officially approving the feasibility report on March 22, 2007. Construction began on September 29, 2007, and the railway went into service on December 30, 2010. With a projected cost of over 22.22 billion RMB shared between China's Ministry of Railways and the Hainan provincial government, this was Hainan's largest single investment project to date and employed a workforce of 50,000. Items of expenditure included 17.7 billion RMB on fixed assets and 1.5 billion RMB on trains. The official opening and start of operations of the eastern ring railway took place on December 30, 2010 with a trial run. At the opening ceremony, Luo Baoming, governor of Hainan, stated that the railway will promote urbanization and greatly improve the island's transportation capacity. The line was put into revenue service on January 7, 2011. The intercity service of the line, which is from Haikou to Meilan, was started to service on July 1, 2019.
Trains
From March 8, 2011, CRH380A trains served the route, although track limitations restrict their maximum speed to. The trains have since been transferred to Beijing Railway Bureau and are no longer in service. Services are now provided by CRH1A type Harmony EMU trains, with a total length of and a total weight of, and a top speed of approximately. Each train comprises eight cars, including five power cars, and three trailers. Passenger cars comprise two first-class and five second-class cars, and one dining car. The first-class cars are model Dingyuan 64, and the second-class cars are Dingyuan 92. The dining car provides fast food and drinks. Washrooms are designed to accommodate disabled people. On November 18, 2016, new CRH1A-A EMUs entered into service, replacing the CRH1A units.
Operation
The railway runs from the Haikou Railway Station to Sanya Railway Station, although many trains terminate at Haikou East Railway Station. The total length of the route is, and will contain 10 pairs of trains traveling per day. The fare for a full journey between Haikou and Sanya is 173 RMB for a first-class seat, and 108 RMB for a second-class seat. Tickets can be purchased up to ten days in advance and are available at station counters or from vending machines.
Schedule
Initially, there were ten trains per day in each direction on the Hainan eastern ring high-speed railway. Since January 20, 2017, thirty-eight trains run in each direction on the Hainan eastern ring high-speed railway, of which twenty-nine are between Haikou or Haikou East and Sanya; five loop around the island from Sanya to Sanya, and four loop from Haikou East to Haikou East. For intercity service, there are thirteen trains run in each direction, of which seven are between Haikou and Haikou East; and six from Haikou to Meilan.
Ridership
In 2017, the entire Hainan ring high-speed railway served 25.39 million passengers, a 3.62 million increase over 2016.
Stations
A total of 20 stations are already built or will be phased in gradually:
On December 30, 2010, an announcement was made that another high-speed railway would be built on the west coast of Hainan. The Hainan western ring high-speed railway, largely paralleling the existing Hainan Western Ring Railway, joins to the Hainan eastern ring railway at both ends. The new western ring was projected to cost 26.78 billion yuan and opened on December 30, 2015.
