Beijing opened a new subway line yesterday in a bid to boost public transport and ease road congestion ahead of the Olympics.

Beijing's No. 5 subway line, which runs through the heart of the city from north to south, opened at 2pm yesterday.

The 27.6-kilometer line, after nearly five years' construction, has 23 stations and runs from Tiantongyuan North Station in northern Beijing's Changping District to Songjiazhuang Station in southern Fengtai District.

Construction of the new subway line began in December, 2002 and involved 12 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion) in investment.

Equipped with a wireless communication network, live broadcasts will be provided on televisions installed in each subway car and passengers will never lose the signal on their mobile phones.

The subway cars are wider and taller than those operating on older lines and are designed to reach speeds of 80 kilometers per hour. Elevators designed to aid disabled people have been installed.

Before the opening of the new line, Beijing had four subway lines covering 114 kilometers, transporting about 1.15 million passengers daily, 15 percent of the total commuters.

Also yesterday, the capital introduced a new subway pricing system, cutting fares by about 30 percent. Now a one-way ticket costs just two yuan, nearly the price of a bottle of purified water, no matter how long one travels and how many times one transfers between lines.