China has suspended all new railway construction projects, as controversy swirls over the nation's high-speed network nearly three weeks after a fatal crash sparked safety concerns.
Rail authorities have also cut the speed of trains running on newly-built high-speed lines and will conduct safety checks on all existing fast links as well as those under construction.
"We will suspend for the time being the examination and approval of new railway construction projects," the State Council, or cabinet, said in a statement late on Wednesday.
The government will also "thoroughly" examine projects that have already been submitted for approval, it added.
Developing the world's largest high-speed rail network has been a key political goal for Beijing, but the death of 40 people in a collision of two high-speed trains on July 23 provoked public outrage and forced it to rethink.
Al Jazeera's Andrew Thomas reports.
