The national railway authority has released China's first construction standards for intercity railways, which it defined as "rapid, convenient and high intensity passenger-only railways" linking cities and urban agglomerations, Beijing Times reported on Wednesday.

According to the Intercity Railway Design Specification, which will be implemented on March 1, 2015, the fastest speed for intercity railways should be no more than 200 km/h.

The release also said that intercity railways should run to at least 50 km to 200 km, and the interval between stations should be no more than 20 km in order to serve more passengers.