BEIJING - An extension of China's first high-speed railway started services on Sunday with only about one hour travel time from Beijing to Tianjin's coastal commercial district.

The new line extends from Tianjin High Speed Railway Station, the previous terminal, to Yujiapu business district in Binhai New Area.

The extension is part of a bigger plan for the integration of Beijing, neighboring Tianjin Municipality and Hebei province.

"A one-hour transportation grid, formed by inter-city rails and metros, will be formed in a 70-kilometer radius around Beijing," said Zhou Zhengyu, director of Beijing transport commission .

The extension runs over 45 kilometers at a designed speed of 350 kilometers per hour. Yujiapu station is underground with convenient links to subway, buses and other public transportation. Besides the extension, at last six other inter-city lines in the city area are under construction.Twenty four new intercity rail lines will come into being in the region by 2050, with combined length of 3,453 km.

In addition, more than 940 kilometers of highway will be built in the next two years. "Travel time within the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei circle will be under three hours," said Zhou.

Transportation choices will also be diversified, Zhou said. "For example, more passengers from Beijing could depart from Tianjin airport. It will ease the pressure on Beijing airport," he said. All airports in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei will be managed by the same company.