A train designed to run at a speed of 200 km per hour left east China's Shanghai for Suzhou early Wednesday morning, ushering in a high-speed era for the world's fastest growing economy.

Nationwide, 140 pairs of high-speed trains with a speed of 200 km per hour or a faster speed will begin to hit the railways on Wednesday. The number will increase to 257 by the end of this year.

Numbered D460, the train left Shanghai at 5:38 a.m. and is expected to arrive in Suzhou 39 minutes later.

Wednesday marks the the beginning of the sixth "speed boost" of Chinese railways, which has been hard-pressed to cope with the country's hunger for bigger transport capacity.

Chinese railway officials said last year, China fulfilled a quarter of the world's total railway transport volume on railways accounting for only 6 percent of the world's total length.

"The sixth speed lift will boost passenger capacity and cargo capacity by over 18 percent and over 12 percent respectively," said Hu Yadong, vice-minister of railways.