Beijing is to open a new subway line ahead of Oct. 1, the National Day of the People's Republic of China, said the city's transport authorities.

The No. 4 subway line, which runs through the heart of the city from south to north, is 28.2 km long with 24 stations. It is expected to handle more than 400,000 passengers a day.

Media have reported the new line would be put into use on Sept. 25 or 28, but a spokesman with the Beijing Municipal Committee of Transport told Xinhua Tuesday the final date was yet to be decided.

Currently, Beijing has eight subway lines covering 200 kilometers.

(Xinhua News Agency September 22, 2009)