Commuters and visitors will have an easier time reaching Jinshan District from the downtown by 2010 when a new railway will go into operation in time for the Shanghai World Expo.

The Jinshan New Town Railway has been approved by local government, but its groundbreaking date has not been set, the Jinshan District urban planning authority said yesterday.

The project planner said trains will make 38 trips daily between Jinshan New Town and Shanghai's South Railway Station when the route goes into operation. A single journey will take between 30 and 45 minutes.

Construction will continue until 2020 to extend the rail line and establish connections with other lines. Jinshan New Town is becoming an economic and cultural center of Jinshan District, in Shanghai's south. Its development will continue through 2020, according to the district government.

When the railway opens, it could benefit the new town's expected population of nearly 230,000, officials said.

The Jinshan railway is among the local routes that are part of China's Coastal Railway Passage, a nationwide project that is now under way. The others include the Shanghai-Nantong Railway, the Pudong Railway and the Shanghai-Zhapu Railway.

(Shanghai Daily November 18, 2008)