The first cast-in-place pile of Xuanmenwan Grand Bridge, an integral part of the Wenling-Yuhuan Railway, is drilled on Aug 9. [Photo/WeChat account: tzfb001]

The first cast-in-place pile of the Xuanmenwan Grand Bridge, an integral part of the Wenling-Yuhuan Railway, was drilled into place on Aug 9.

This is also the first pile to be drilled for the railway, which links Wenling with Yuhuan, two county-level cites in Taizhou, East China's Zhejiang province.

The Wenling-Yuhuan Railway broke ground in late April.

Representing an investment of 7.6 billion yuan ($1.17 billion), the rail line stretches 37.2 kilometers and has a designed speed of 350 km/h.

The Wenling section will span roughly 21.1 kilometers, while the rest of the line will be situated in Yuhuan.

The line will be a public-private partnership (PPP) project and the only high-speed railway in China independently constructed by a prefecture-level city.

Slated to open to traffic in 2025, the project will also mark the opening of the first railway line in Yuhuan, which was ranked among the top 100 Chinese counties in terms of comprehensive strength. After its opening, all administrative areas in Taizhou will be connected by high-speed rail.