CHONGQING/GUIYANG -- A railway connecting Chongqing and Guiyang, two major cities in Southwest China, started operation Thursday.

A bullet train left Chongqing municipality for Guiyang, capital of Guizhou province, at 8:50 am.

Designed for trains running at a speed of 200 km per hour, the 347-km rail line will cut travel time between Chongqing and Guiyang from the current 10 hours to 2 hours, and shorten travel time between Chengdu, capital of Sichuan, and Guiyang to 3.5 hours.

The railway will improve traffic between China's southwest and booming southern areas.