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Trans-Australia rail link finished
ALICE SPRINGS, Australia -- A mammoth trans-continental rail project to link the northern Australian city of Darwin with the southern city of Adelaide is just months away from coming into operation. On Thursday the final thermal weld was made near the central city of Alice Springs, binding the existing southern section of track to the newly built 1,400 kilometer (870 mile) line north to Darwin. That leaves just a few more kilometers to be laid on the outskirts of Darwin before testing of the full track can begin. The dream of a rail line across the "Red Center" uniting north and south Australia has been around for over a century, but was held back by the huge costs and the challenge of crossing the inhospitable desert terrain. The new line has taken two and a half years to build at a cost of about US$840 million. Once in operation early next year it will dramatically speed up shipping times for exports and imports between Asia and Australia's southern cities. At present most shipping runs through container ports in Melbourne and Sydney. Once a new container terminal is in operation in Darwin the new rail link should cut weeks off shipping times. An existing passenger service, the Ghan, largely used by leisure travelers, will also be extended from Alice Springs all the way up to Darwin. The train service got its name from the Afghan camel herders used in the early days of exploration in the Australian Outback. Once in operation the full 2,979-kilometer (1,851-mile) journey from Adelaide to Darwin will take about 47 hours. Even before services have begun rail officials are reporting a surge of bookings with thousands of tickets already sold.
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