(Yicai Global) July 14 -- Construction work started yesterday on a new CNY94 billion (USD14 billion) intercity railroad that will run between Shanghai and two neighboring cities, Suzhou in Jiangsu province and Jiaxing in Zhejiang province.

The Shanghai-Suzhou-Jiaxing Intercity Railway will shorten journey times between the three cities to less than an hour, Wang Yang, a project manager at Shanghai Shentie Investment, which is overseeing building work on the Shanghai section, told Yicai Global.

The new 170-kilometer line, which is expected to open in 2028, will enable longer distance commuting and speed up urban integration between the three regions, Wang added.

“The construction and operation of the railway will break the administrative barriers of the cross provincial regions it passes through,” he said, “and help Shanghai accelerate its economic integration schemes with the neighboring regions of the two provinces which centers on the city’s Hongqiao area.”

The rail link also will benefit the development of Shanghai’s outer suburban district of Qingpu, which borders both Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione