Major cities and towns along route include Zhangzhou, Zhao'an, Raoping, the Chaoshan region (Chaozhou and Shantou), Puning, Shanwei, Huidong and Huizhou.

Historically, the southeast coastal region relied on maritime transportation, and rugged terrain made railway construction more expensive.

During the Cold War, the southeast coast faced the threat of invasion from Republic of China on Taiwan and all railways were built inland.

But the anticipated completion was repeatedly delayed due to further safety reviews and inspections after the Wenzhou High-Speed rail crash.

[2][5] In 2017, cumulative ridership of the line exceeded 53 million passengers, with daily services increased to 101 trains in each direction.