(Yicai Global) Feb. 11 -- The National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planner and price setter, has approved a CNY53.6 billion (USD7.7 billion) urban rail transit plan in Xuzhou as authorities begin to return to work following the Chinese New Year holiday, which was extended due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus from Wuhan.

The rail program includes the second phase of Line 3 of city's subway and the first phase of Lines 4, 5 and 6, the NDRC said online yesterday. The work is scheduled to be completed in 2024 and will be 40 percent funded by the local finance department, with the remainder coming mostly from bank loans with some other borrowing.

China pushed back the return to work of many companies after the Chinese New Year following an outbreak of a new coronavirus that claimed 100 lives yesterday and now has a death toll of over 1,000, according to official data. A large number of organizations are asking employees to work from home in a bid to prevent further spread of the disease.

There are still a lot of shortcomings in China's infrastructure and public service sectors, especially as the economy is undergoing a new phase of transformation, Ding Changfa, an associate professor at Xiamen University's economics department, told Yicai Global. The population is flowing rapidly into central cities and transit development can ease traffic and accelerate the flow of people and goods, he added.

Xuzhou opened its metro system in September and has two lines under construction. Ultimately, it will have 11 lines spanning 323.1 kilometers, with seven lines in the central urban area and four express routes in the outskirts.

There were 40 Chinese mainland cities with subway systems as of the end of 2019, with a total length of 6.7 million kilometers. The NDRC approved three new metro construction plans last year, in Zhengzhou, Xi'an and Chengdu, covering 486.3 kilometers with investment of CNY342.6 billion.

Editors: Dou Shicong, James Boynton