Details of China's planned second intercity express rail link between Jiujiang, on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and Nanchang, capital of Jiangxi Province, were rolled out on Thursday.

 

Jiangxi was selected for the second intercity express due to its position on the economic corridor along the Yangtze River and serves as of shipping and land transport hub in east China, according to industry experts.

 

It is an important link on the Beijing-Kowloon Railway, the north-south trunk rail between the capital and Hong Kong.

 

The Nanchang-Jiujiang intercity railway will begin at Lushan, the popular summer resort in Jiujiang City, and follow the existing Beijing-Kowloon line inside Jiangxi, ending at Nanchang's north station, said Ling Chengxing, deputy governor of Jiangxi.

 

Almost 97 km of new track will be laid for the 131.27 km journey, Ling added at the launch of Jiangxi Provincial Local Railway Construction Group Company.

 

The company, with financing from Jiangxi provincial government, would be responsible for the planning, design, construction, management and operation of all railways in Jiangxi, including the intercity express.

 

The provincial government and the Ministry of Railways would equally share the estimated 6.16-billion-yuan (US$770 million) cost of the new railway's construction, scheduled for completion in 2009.

 

Trains would run on the dual track at up to 200 km per hour, alleviating the pressure on the Beijing-Kowloon service and slashing the rail journey time between the cities from 90 minutes to 40 minutes.

 

China's first intercity express is the 115-km Beijing-Tianjin link, currently under construction and should begin operation in 2008.

 

(Xinhua News Agency November 24, 2006)