The Jinhua-Taizhou railway line starts trial operations on March 18. [Photo/lsnews.com.cn]

With trial operations starting on March 18, the Jinhua-Taizhou railway line -- an important part of the rail network in East China's Zhejiang province -- is expected to formally open soon, enabling Lishui city to be connected to more cities.

The new railway line, linking Jinhua and Taizhou -- two prefecture-level cities in East China's Zhejiang and going through nine districts, counties and county-level cities in the province -- stretches over 231 kilometers. The design speed for trains on the railway is 160 kilometers per hour.

With a total investment of some 19.98 billion yuan ($3.07 billion), the line will be used to transport both passengers and cargo, shortening the travel time between Jinhua and Taizhou to one and a half hours by avoiding a detour to Wenzhou.

In Lishui, there is a station in Huzhen town, in Jinyun county. The Jinyun section of the railway line is 12 km long.

Once it opens, people in Lishui will be able to reach more cities including Shanghai, Chengdu and Kunming by railway, an initiative widely expected to provide a major boost to regional economic development.