On the afternoon of December 20, the mobilization meeting for the start of construction of the Jiqing High-Speed Railway project was held in Jinan, marking that after the early start of the Qingyang Tunnel, the Jiqing High-Speed Railway has entered the full-line construction stage. It is reported that the Jiqing High-Speed Railway has a total length of 307.9 kilometers, with 10 stations, a designed operating speed of 350 km/h, and a construction period of 4 years. After the Jiqing High-Speed Railway is completed, a 1-hour high-speed rail direct connection between Jinan and Qingdao will be realized.

　　After the mobilization meeting, the Jiqing High-Speed Railway project will carry out a 100-day labor competition activity from December 23, 2015 to March 31, 2016. All participating units will, in accordance with the overall requirements of “production and living arranged simultaneously, implemented simultaneously, and a comprehensive construction start situation formed in a standardized, orderly and rapid manner” and the 2016 project construction plan of the Jiqing High-Speed Railway, creatively carry out various tasks after entering the site, so as to lay a good start for the goal of “high-standard start, high-efficiency advancement, and high-quality compliance” of the Jiqing High-Speed Railway project.

　　According to the 2016 construction investment plan issued by Jiqing High-Speed Railway Co., Ltd., the Jiqing High-Speed Railway plans to invest 15 billion yuan in 2016, accounting for 26% of the total project investment. According to the work arrangement, the Jiqing High-Speed Railway will complete the clearing of all land for key projects and start construction before the end of January 2016. Land acquisition and demolition will be basically completed before the end of April 2016, and all treatment will be completed by the end of June.

　　It is reported that the Jiqing High-Speed Railway is the first national high-speed trunk railway in China mainly invested by local governments since the investment and financing reform of China's railway construction, with an estimated total investment of about 60 billion yuan and a construction period of 4 years. The newly built Jiqing High-Speed Railway is 307.9 kilometers long, with a designed speed of 350 km/h. The whole line has 10 stations: Jinan East Passenger Station, Zhangqiu North, Zouping, Zibo North, Linzi North, Qingzhou North, Weifang North, Gaomi North, Qingdao Airport and Hongdao, and the Jiaozhou North Station will be renovated.

　　The previously released environmental impact assessment content shows that the Jiqing High-Speed Railway project will also build a connecting tunnel to the new Qingdao Airport, with a high-speed rail station set up under the new airport. The airport tunnel is located in Jiaodong Subdistrict, Jiaozhou City, starting from Wangjiazhuang Village in the north, passing southward through Zhouwangzhuang Village, Qiandiankou Village, Erpu Village, Zhujiatun Village, and ending at Jiaodong Village in the south, with a total tunnel length of 7,250 meters.

　　After the Jiqing High-Speed Railway is completed, a 1-hour high-speed rail direct connection between Jinan and Qingdao will be realized. The Jiqing High-Speed Railway connects westward to the Jinan hub and links with the Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway and passenger dedicated lines such as Shijiazhuang-Jinan and Shijiazhuang-Taiyuan, which can form a rapid passenger transport corridor from the Shandong Peninsula to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and Northeast China, and from the Shandong Peninsula to the Central Plains urban agglomeration and the Yangtze River Delta; it connects eastward to the Qingdao hub and links with the Qingrong Intercity Railway and Qinglian Railway, etc., forming a “2-hour” transportation circle within the province. It also takes only about 2 hours from Jinan to Yantai and Rizhao.