Construction work on the new Qingdao-Lianyungang high-speed railway began recently to connect the city of Qingdao, Shandong province and the city of Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, qingdaonews.com reported on Dec 28.

The 194.5-kilometer line, which has a designed speed of 200 km/hr and three main stops, at Qingdao and Rizhao, Shandong and Lianyungang, is expected to cost a total of 23.77 billion yuan ($3.82 billion). The double-track railway is expected to go into operation by the end of 2018.