Through 10 months' efforts, Chinese workers completed a new tunnel running beneath the Huangpu River bed as of Tuesday.

The tunnel, with a length of 2,254 meters, connects the international shipping center of Shanghai Port near the Bund, the city's famed landmark, on the west bank of the Huangpu River, and Lujiazui finance and trade district on the other side of the river.

The project is financed by the municipal government and costs about 1.8 billion yuan (about US$265 million), according to an employee surnamed Qin with the Shanghai Chengtou Corporation, an industrial investment group company.

Zhang Rencai, project manager with the Shanghai Urban Construction and Tunnels Co. Ltd, the tunnel builder, said on Tuesday the newly completed tunnel would play a big role in easing traffic congestion in Shanghai.

Before the tunnel opens to traffic ahead of the World Expo May 1 next year, workers will have to complete other tasks inside the tunnel, such as installation of machinery and electrical devices, and decoration, said Zhang.

The Huangpu River, which is 114 km long and runs through Shanghai proper, originates from Taihu Lake in east China's Jiangsu Province and joins the estuary of the Yangtze River at Wusongkou.

Six tunnels crossing the river have opened to traffic, while workers are still building eight others, including the one completed Tuesday.

(Xinhua News Agency June 24, 2009)