New high-speed railway link to open in China

A new high-speed railway link that connects the cities including Tianjin and Qinhuangdao in north China will be put into operation on Dec. 1, railway authorities said on Sunday. The link, with a total length of 287 km, is designed with a maximum speed of 350 km per hour and set with nine stops. The maximum speed will be set at 300 km per hour during the link's initial stage in operation, according to the country's railway authorities. Travel time between the departure stop of Tianjin West and the terminal stop of Qinhuangdao is expected to be reduced to one hour and 11 minutes from almost 2.5 hours previously. Construction of the link started on Nov. 8, 2008 and running tests began in early November this year.