The Chongqing East to Qianjiang section of the Chongqing-Xiamen High-Speed Railway, a key part of China's high-speed rail network, began operation on Friday.
The Chongqing East to Qianjiang section starts at Chongqing East Railway Station and passes through the areas such as Nanan District, Wulong District, and Qianjiang District. It connects to the Qianjiang Railway Station of the Qianjiang-Zhangjiajie-Changde high-speed railway.
The main line is 242 km long, with a designed speed of 350 km per hour. Travel time from Chongqing to Changsha can be as short as three hours and 53 minutes, which is another fast passenger transport route between the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle and the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan area.
"With the opening of the high-speed railway, travelers can reach Zhangjiajie from Chongqing East in two and a half hours and get to Changsha from Chengdu East in about six hours. This has established a new transport corridor connecting Chengdu, Chongqing, and Hunan, which is important for promoting rapid socio-economic development in the region," said Yang Zhiyong, commander of the Wulong Command Center of the Chongqing-Guizhou Chongqing-Wanzhou Railway Company.
New section of Chongqing-Xiamen high-speed railway starts operation
Chicago policymakers have introduced measures to increase housing supply, in a move that local activists and construction industry stakeholders have hailed as key to easing affordability pressures on residents.
According to the city's 2025 annual report on homelessness, Chicago is facing its largest gap in affordable and available housing in a decade, with the annual Point-in-Time (PIT) Count estimating that 7,452 people were experiencing homelessness, either in shelters or unsheltered locations, on January 23, 2025.
Steven Vance, a social worker in Chicago, said policies that previously curbed the city's housing supply have pushed up rent costs amid demographic changes.
"Households are declining in size, and that means we need more homes, and I thought it was strange that we would artificially restrict how many homes could get built in Chicago. Right now in Chicago, we have one of the highest rent growths, compared year to year in the country, and so now is a pivotal time to allow more housing," he said.
To address the challenge, Chicago has introduced zoning and land-use reforms, including the Additional Dwelling Units (ADU) Ordinance, aimed at increasing residential density and expanding housing supply.
The ordinance effectively expands housing access across the city by allowing ADUs in attics, basements, and accessory buildings, easing the rent burden and creating more budget-friendly housing options.
"In December 2020, City Council adopted an ordinance that would legalize ADUs in five pilot areas. (With ADU,) rents will maybe not always come down, but they will not climb as quickly as they are now if we have more housing options," he said.
The construction sector in the city has welcomed the policy change, with builders jumping on the opportunity to create new structures. For many in the industry, boosting housing supply is not just about doing business, but about addressing the issue of affordability as Chicago residents themselves.
"The housing market in Chicago has been impacted by the ADU program, to me, in a really big way. It's enabled a lot more rental projects to be constructed. I want there to be more housing in Chicago. I think there is a need for that, and I think there's also a need for responsible development that maintains the character of the neighborhood. Affordable housing to me is a really important issue, and to me, the biggest denominator in affordable housing is the lack of supply. The best route to affordable housing is to have an influx of housing," said Nick Serra, a construction professional.
Chicago expands housing supply to ease affordability pressure
