Beijing and Tianjin are planning a monthly pass for high-speed intercity trains linking the cities, as well as canceling expressway toll¹ fees between the two cities, the mayor of Tianjin said on Monday.

 

天津市长周一表示，计划对连接北京与天津之间高速城际列车实行月票制，同时将取消两地间的高速公路通行费。

 

The move will facilitate the integrated development of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province, an outline given in 2015 to improve transportation links in the area, while also moving some of Beijing's low-end industries to neighboring areas.

 

Wang Dongfeng, mayor of Tianjin, said the plan is to build a modern transportation system. He added that a unified² smart prepaid traffic card, called Yikatong, already exists in 12 cities in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and the government aims to expand its use to all cities in the area by the end of this year.

 

In addition to universal traffic cards and expressways, the proposal of a high-speed train network in the region was approved last year, with Beijing-Binhai New Area Intercity Railway expected to be completed by 2020.

 

The Beijing-Tianjin Intercity Railway was the first of its kind in China. Traveling at up to 350 kilometers per hour, passengers can commute³ between the cities in about 40 minutes on trains that depart every 10 to 15 minutes.

 

Officials from Tianjin's transportation bureau said they are still deliberating the monthly pass mechanism⁴ and a timetable is not available.

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