BEIJING, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- China has approved railway construction linking Shanghai and Huzhou, Zhejiang Province, to upgrade the country's transport network and facilitate socioeconomic integration in eastern regions, according to the country's economic planning agency.

The 163.54-km railway will start from Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station, crossing Suzhou in Jiangsu Province, and end in Huzhou, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said in a statement on its website on Thursday.

Designed to run at a top speed of 350 km per hour, the rail line is expected to carry about 50 million passengers per year.

A total of 36.8 billion yuan (5.33 billion U.S. dollars) will be invested in the construction of the project, which will take four years, the NDRC said.