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Construction has started on two railway links located in central and eastern China that will cut 12 hours off the travel time from Shanghai to Wuhan in Hubei Province, the Shanghai Railway Administration said in a statement yesterday.

One of the two lines links Anhui Province's Hefei and Nanjing in Jiangsu Province, and will be completed by the end of 2007. The other joins Hefei and Wuhan, and is expected to be finished by the end of 2008.

Both stretches are designed for a maximum passenger transport speed of 200 kilometers per hour and for a top cargo transport speed of 120 kilometers per hour.

After completion, the two straights will allow trains leaving Hefei to travel directly to Nanjing or Wuhan without making a detour via other cities.

The travel distance by train between Hefei and Nanjing will be shortened to 154 kilometers from current 312 kilometers. The travel time between the two cities will be cut to less than an hour, about three hours less than the current travel time.

The project will also shorten the running distance between Hefei and Wuhan from 565 to 351 kilometers. It will take passengers less than two hours to make a one-way trip, which currently takes about 8.5 hours.

Shanghai residents will also benefit from the straight link, according to the statement.

When the lines are completed, local travelers can arrive in Hefei in three hours by taking an express train, four hours less than the present fastest train.