Travel time between Jinan, capital of Shandong province, and Yantai, another city in Shandong, has been shortened by 35 minutes, as the Weifang-Laixi high-speed railway began operating on Nov 26.

The railway starts from Weifang North Station, runs through Changyi South Station in Weifang and Pingdu North Station in Qingdao, and ends at Laixi North Station in Qingdao.

The line is 125.97 kilometers long and has a planned speed of 350 kilometers per hour. It is an important part of the Jinan-Qingdao high-speed railway network and mainly serves passengers from Yantai, Weihai, and Weifang.

The line will cut travel time between Jinan and Yantai from two hours 21 minutes to one hour 46 minutes and cut travel time between Jinan and Weihai from two hours 49 minutes to two hours 16 minutes.

The route will play a vital role in strengthening regional exchange in Shandong province and promoting the development of small and medium-sized cities along the route.

There will be three pairs of high-speed trains operating on the route, namely the G6935 and G6940 trains from Jinan East Station to Rongcheng Station; the G6945 and G6946 trains from Jinan East to Weihai Station; and the G9211 and G9212 trains from Jinan East Station to Laixi Station.

Tickets for the trains will go on sale on Nov 26 at 18:00.