Jinan-Qingdao railway almost ready for service

The Jinan-Qingdao high-speed railway began test runs in Shandong province on Thursday. If no complications arise, the line will go into service at the end of this year, the railway authority said.

"Tests will last about four months," said Li Xigang of China Railway Corp's Jinan bureau.

When put into service, trains on the Jinan-Qingdao high-speed railway can run at a maximum operating speed of 350 kilometers per hour. This will cut travel time between Jinan and Qingdao to one hour from the current 2.5 hours.