Construction work has been completed in Guangdong province on China’s first underwater railway tunnel, reported Xinhua. The 10.8km-long Shiziyang Tunnel passes under the Pearl River estuary and will form part of a 140km high-speed rail link that will connect Guangzhou with Shenzhen and Hong Kong. Trains will be able to travel at a top speed of 350kph.

The Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong express rail link is scheduled to put into operation in 2012, when the rail journey time between Guangzhou and Hong Kong will be cut from the current two hours to 40 minutes.