A high-speed commuter railway running from distant Jinshan district to downtown will begin trial operation on September 28, city officials said Thursday at a press conference for the line's inaugural journey.
 
The 4.08 billion yuan ($648.25 million) Jinshan Railway will cut in half the time it takes commuters and tourists to travel from Shanghai South Railway Station in Xuhui district to the Jinshanwei Station in Jinshan.

"It will greatly ease traffic in the southwestern part of the city and will foster economic growth in the area," said Yuan Ruimin, a railway official in charge of the line's construction.

The railway's trains can travel at speeds up to 160 kilometers per hour and can deliver passengers the length of the 56-kilometer line in 32 minutes, according to a municipal government press release.

Currently, commuters have to take long-distance buses for at least an hour to travel between the same destinations.  

Prices will range from 3 yuan to 10 yuan, depending on how far a passenger travels on the line, which has nine stations, according to the press release.

"We set low prices to make the railway convenient for people to use. But we might adjust prices in the future," said Liu Jun, an official from the city's urban construction and communications commission, which oversees the city's public transportation system.

Riders will be able to pay with their transportation cards or buy tickets at the stations.

Zhao Caisheng, a local resident who travels frequently between the city center and Jinshan New Town, has been eagerly waiting for the railway to open.

"I usually spend more than an hour on a crowded bus between the Lianhua Road Station on Metro Line 1 and Jinshanwei Station. If traffic is heavy, it takes even longer," he told the Global Times.

Although Zhao is pleased with the new railway, he remains concerned whether there will be enough seats on the trains during rush hours.

Each train will be able to carry up to 584 passengers per trip in its eight cars, said Xu Jun, a conductor for the railway.

There will be 15 trains running on the line each day during the trial, including four nonstop trains, said Wang Feng, deputy chief of the Shanghai Railway Bureau. The other 11 trains, which stop at each station, can make the entire journey in about an hour.

After one month of trial operation, the line will start running 36 trains each day, including 10 nonstop trains.

The local government began building the railway in 2009, according to the press release.