SHIJIAZHUANG — China will build an extension line of the Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed railway that will become operational in 2019 to serve the 2022 Winter Olympics.

With a designed speed of 250 km per hour, the 53.2-km rail line will extend from the Beijing-Zhangjiakou railway to Chongli District of Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province, where most skiing events for the 2022 Winter Olympics will be held, local authorities said on June 3.

Construction of the railway in Chongli has been approved by China Railway Corporation and Hebei Provincial Government, said the development and reform commission of Zhangjiakou City, the local economic planner.

Construction on the Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed rail link began last year. Construction on the Chongli high-speed rail will start this year.

Travel time between Beijing and Zhangjiakou via the new rail line will be 50 minutes and the trip from Zhangjiakou to Chongli, about 200 kilometers northwest of Beijing, will take 25 minutes.

The new high-speed rails will serve the Winter Olympics, help boost tourism in Chongli and improve transportation for locals. It will also serve as a part of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei regional intercity rail network.

Chongli’s ski season lasts over 150 days from the end of October to the next April.

Beijing and Zhangjiakou in July last year won their co-bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.