(Yicai Global) Dec. 19 -- The western Chinese city of Chongqing will ramp up construction of high-speed railways in hopes of improving traffic conditions and facilitating local economic development, Chongqing Morning News reported.

The local government plan specifies that between next year and 2020, the city will kick off the construction of six high-speed railways covering 1,400 kilometers that connect Chongqing with Changsha, Kunming, Xi'an, Lanzhou, Chengdu and Wuhan.

Their designed speed is 350 kilometers per hour, and they will greatly shorten the travel time from Chongqing to these cities.

"A star-shaped high-speed railway network will be phased in at an accelerated speed under the standard of 350 kilometers per hour throughout the railway lines," a Chongqing Transport Commission insider said, adding that Chongqing is about to invest CNY81 billion (USD12.25 billion) in rail transport construction in the coming three years.

The new railways will make the trip from Chongqing to Chengdu in one hour. They will go from Chongqing to Guiyang in less than two and from Chongqing to Xi'an, Kunming, Wuhan and Changsha in under six hours. They will travel from Chongqing to Beijing and Shanghai in eight hours.