The completion of the 281km line has reduced the journey time between the two cities to 1h 25min.

Construction began in July 2009 on the Yuan 36bn ($US 5.8bn) line, which has eight stations and a design speed of 250km/h, albeit with provision for 300km/h operation in the longer-term.

  • Construction was officially launched last week on the Jinan - Qingdao high-speed line in Shandong province. In a break with previous practice, China Railway Corporation will fund only 20% of the project, with the remaining 80% coming from local government sources.