Shaoxing ushers in era of metro lines

The Shaoxing Metro Line 1 officially started operations on Friday, enabling passengers to travel from downtown Shaoxing of Zhejiang province to provincial capital Hangzhou in about 75 minutes.

Shaoxing Metro Line 1 currently has 23 stations and includes a main line and a branch line. The main line runs from China Textile City Station to Fangquan Station. The branch line runs from Convention and Exhibition Center Station to Huangjiu Small Town Station.

Construction of the 34.1-kilometer metro line began in July 2017 and cost about 23.87 billion yuan, making it the largest infrastructure project in Shaoxing.

Shaoxing Metro Line 1 is a key project in the province and will boost transportation connectivity for the upcoming Asian Games Hangzhou 2022.

As one of the five co-hosting cities of the Asian Games, Shaoxing will hold the women's basketball, baseball, softball, men's volleyball, and climbing competitions during the Games in the following venues -- Shaoxing KeqiaoYangshan Sport Climbing Center, the Shaoxing Baseball & Softball Sports Center, Shaoxing Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium, China Textile City Sports Center.

Besides, Jianhu Soccer Training Ground will also provide training places for the participating teams during the soccer competitions.

Fang Xiaoying and Hou Minhao contributed to this story.