Direct underground connection to be built between Beijing's two major railway stations

On October 27, reporters learned that 886,000 square meters of the demolition and removal work for the underground through line and the Beijing sections of Beijing-Shanghai and Beijing-Shijiazhuang Express Railways have been completed, 74.2 percent of the entire project.

A new underground rail service will shuttle between two of the city's major  train terminals by 2012.

At the same time, the capital will also invest in building the Beijing-Hebei section of Beijing-Shenzhen Line for Passenger Transportation, Beijing-Zhangjiakou Interurban Railway and Beijing-Tangshan Interurban Railway, with the highest speed train reaching 350 kilometers per hour. The three railways, together with Beijing-Tianjin Express Railway, will form a new city circle. In addition, according to sources, the underground through line in Beijing connecting Beijing Railway Station and Beijing West Railway Station is estimated to be finished in 2012.

Trains to stop both in Beijing Railway Station and Beijing West Railway Station

Wang Shengjun, a member of the Beijing Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, told reporters that the underground through line in Beijing is 9.15 kilometers long and will link the Beijing Railway Station and Beijing West Railway Station. According to the design requirements, the underground through line will be a two-way underground railroad, among which the tunnel is around 7.3 kilometers long and the tunnel will be at a depth of about 39 meters, and is the first large diameter tunnel project in China to be built using a soil and water shield method in a prosperous urban area. The deepest part of the tunnel is as high as a four-story building. Currently, 46 percent of the project has been completed. According to reports, it is planned that the line can transport both passenger and freight cargoes. Parts of the trains will stop at both Beijing Railway Station and Beijing West Railway Station, and passengers can choose from which station they get off. The total investment for the approved project has reached 3.1 billion yuan. And it is planned to be completed in the end of 2010.