Guiyang, capital of southwest China's Guizhou Province, started the construction of an urban railway network Tuesday.

The 18.9-billion-yuan (US$2.76 billion) network will link nine logistic centers and encircle the city.

During the planned four-year construction, a total of 259 km of railways will be built in the city.

"The urban high-speed railway net is of great significance to the integration and improvement of transport in southwest China," said Liu Zhijun, minister of railways.

On Sunday, Guiyang opened its first round-the-city highway to traffic. It extends 121 km and links the city with other parts of China.

The newly-built highway gives the city the potential to expand its urban area from the current 37 square kilometers to 507 square kilometers so that the area can hold a population of 3.6 million people, double the current total, said Li Jun, secretary of Guiyang City's Communist Party Committee.

(Xinhua News Agency September 30, 2009)