On the morning of September 26, Sichuan and Chongqing held a ceremony via video link to begin the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-speed Railway. Chen Min'er, Secretary of the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee, and Peng Qinghua, Secretary of the CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee, attended the event in Chongqing and Chengdu respectively, and announced the full commencement of the construction of the railway's Chongqing section and Sichuan section respectively. The event was addressed by Lu Dongfu, Chairman of China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. (China Railway), Tang Liangzhi, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee and Mayor of Chongqing, and Huang Qiang, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee and Governor of Sichuan Province.

　　Tang Liangzhi, on behalf of the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee and Chongqing Municipal People's Government, congratulated the start of the construction of the project and thanked China Railway and relevant ministries and commissions. He said that the Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-Speed Railway is a major transportation infrastructure project personally planned by General Secretary Xi Jinping, and a leading, landmark and demonstration project in the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle. The start of the construction of the project is a concrete action to implement the important instructions and requirements of General Secretary Xi Jinping, and what the people in Sichuan and Chongqing have been awaiting long. The project will play an important supporting role in building an integrated comprehensive transportation system in Sichuan and Chongqing, strengthening dual-core driving and regional linkage in Chengdu and Chongqing, jointly developing the Belt and Road and the Yangtze River Economic Belt, and ushering in a new stage in the large-scale development of western China in the new era. Over the past more than one year, Chongqing and Sichuan, in accordance with General Secretary Xi Jinping's important discourses on transportation work, have accelerated the integration of the four networks (Internet + radio and TV network + telecommunication network + power grid) and the building of a one-hour commuting circle, and made joint efforts in the fast-track construction of high-speed railways in the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle. Chongqing will strengthen connection and cooperation with China Railway and Sichuan, strive to build the Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-speed Railway into a new corridor to promote the high-quality development of Chengdu and Chongqing and to serve the high-quality happy life of the people in Sichuan and Chongqing, and live up to the expectations of General Secretary Xi Jinping and the CPC Central Committee with practical actions.

　　Huang Qiang, on behalf of the CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee and the People's Government of Sichuan Province, congratulated the commencement of the construction of the project and thanked China Railway and all the builders. He said that Sichuan has thoroughly studied and implemented the guiding principles of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches, firmly established the idea of coordinated development, worked together with Chongqing, and promoted the implementation of a number of major plans, projects, platforms and reform measures for the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle. The Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-speed Railway is another landmark and demonstration project in the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle and a path that carries our mission, leads to win-win cooperation and brings happiness to people's life. It will further shorten the space and time distance between the two megacities, and better meet people's new expectations for a better life. We will spare no effort to build the Sichuan section of the Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-speed Railway, and move faster to make new advances in the development of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle. Local governments along the line should fulfill their responsibilities in places within their jurisdiction and effectively ensure land expropriation, demolition, capital and other factors; relevant provincial departments should think in terms of the general picture, and be more responsible and service-oriented; the project owner should refine the plan and speed up construction; and all construction units should strive to ensure work safety, quality and environmental protection, and complete and put it into operation as soon as possible.

　　Lu Dongfu said that the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle is a major national strategy made by the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core. As a national strategic, pioneering and key infrastructure, railways bear great responsibility in serving national strategies. The Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-Speed Railway is an important part of the eight longitudinal and eight horizontal main high-speed railway corridors in China and the two main and two auxiliary passenger transport corridors along the Yangtze River. The planning and implementation of the project is of great significance to further shortening the space and time distance between Chengdu and Chongqing, strengthening the status of Chongqing and Chengdu as central cities, and accelerating the formation of an important growth pole of high-quality development in western China. It will also play a very important role of exploration and demonstration in deepening the independent innovation of key high-speed railway technologies and improving the self-reliance and self-strengthening of railway science and technology in China. We should follow the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping, regard the Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-Speed Railway as a key railway construction project during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, move faster to complete all preparatory work in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations, and step up the efforts in such aspects as land expropriation, demolition, environmental assessment, water and soil conservation. The railway construction units and local governments should make joint efforts to lay a solid foundation for the implementation of the project with a high starting point, high standards and high quality, and strive to build the Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-speed Railway into a landmark project in the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle.

　　Amid warm applause, Chen Min'er and Peng Qinghua respectively announced that the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-Speed Railway's Chongqing section and Sichuan section was fully started.

　　Before the event, Peng Qinghua and Huang Qiang were briefed on the planning and construction of the railway.

　　According to the approval of the National Development and Reform Commission, the Chengdu-Chongqing Central Line High-Speed Railway runs west from the Chongqingbei Railway Station to the Chengdu Railway Station, a hub of Chongqing and Chengdu respectively, via the Western China (Chongqing) Science City, Tongliang District and Dazu District in Chongqing, as well as Anyue County, Lezhi County and Jianzhou New City in Sichuan. The main track is 292 kilometers long, the design speed is 350 kilometers per hour, bridges and tunnels account for 85%, the total investment of the project is 69.3 billion yuan, and the total construction period of the project is five years.

　　Li Wenxin, Deputy General Manager of China Railway, presided over the ceremony, and Ma Chunshan, Chairman of Yangtze River Railway Group Co., Ltd., made a statement on behalf of the construction units. The ceremony was also attended by Sichuan provincial leaders Shi Xiaolin, Luo Wen and Wang Yihong, Chongqing municipal leaders Wang Fu, Li Mingqing, Duan Chenggang, Lu Kehua and Zheng Xiangdong, Chengdu municipal leader Wang Fengchao, responsible comrades of relevant provincial and municipal departments and local governments of Sichuan and Chongqing, as well as responsible members of relevant central government agencies, enterprises and public institutions in Sichuan and some provincial state-owned enterprises.