Some 150 billion Yuan (US$18.1 billion) is expected to be spent on railway construction in Guangdong in the next 16 years, according to a recently approved Guangdong Railway Network Construction Plan.

According to the plan, the province will build 2,617 kilometers of railways to improve the province's railway network by adding eight inter-provincial railroads connecting with railways of Beijing-Guangzhou, Beijing-Kowloon, Luoyang-Zhanjiang.

The expansions will mean Guangdong will be the first province in China with the most advanced railway network by the year 2010.

With the completion of the new lines, including a railway connecting Maoming and Hangzhou, the total length railways will be 4,500 kilometers.

The province will also be connected Pearl Delta cities with Hong Kong and Macao by establishing a light rail system.

The construction of four key projects including the Guangzhou-Wuhan passenger railway, Guangzhou new railway station and the inter-Delta light rail will be started by the end of the year.

The total length of railways in Guangdong is 1,883 kilometers, 2.56 percent of China's rail network. Guangdong handled 155.5 million tons of freight in 2003.

Editor: Olivia