The construction of the Ningbo-Zhoushan Railway, which has attracted much public attention, has made new progress. Recently, a bidding announcement for the survey and design of the new Ningbo-Zhoushan Railway was released online. Industry insiders said that this cross-sea railway, after entering this stage, will gradually move from concept to reality. In the future, taking a high-speed train with bus-like frequency from Ningbo, one can reach Zhoushan in just 30 minutes, making commuting between the two places as convenient as within the city.

According to reports, the Ningbo-Zhoushan Railway is located in the eastern coastal area of Zhejiang Province. It starts from Ningbo East Station in the west, passes through Yinzhou and Beilun, reaches Jintang Island, Cezi Island, and the main island of Zhoushan, and ends at Baiquan Street in Dinghai District. The total length of the line is 77.006 kilometers, of which about 70.741 kilometers are newly built, and 6.265 kilometers utilize existing lines. Among these, the Xihoumen, Taoyaomen, and Fuchimen sections use combined highway-railway cross-sea bridges. The entire line has 7 stations, including 4 newly built stations: Beilun West, Jintang, Ma'ao, and Zhoushan (Baiquan), and 3 reconstructed existing stations: Ningbo East, Yunlong, and Qiu'ai.

In terms of railway function positioning, the Ningbo-Zhoushan Railway is positioned primarily for tourist passenger flow, while also accommodating intercity passenger flow. It is a passenger dedicated line with a design speed of 250 km/h, operating cross-line medium- and long-distance EMU trains and intercity EMU trains between Zhoushan and Ningbo, and between Zhoushan and Hangzhou, with provisions for operating a small number of light express freight trains. The connection to the Ningbo hub adopts the Qiu'ai connection scheme; the crossing of the Jintang waterway adopts a separate highway and railway tunnel scheme, and the crossings of Xihoumen, Taoyaomen, and Fuchimen adopt a combined highway-railway bridge scheme.

Once this railway is completed, it will not only end the history of Zhoushan having no train service, but also make it possible to travel from Ningbo city to Zhoushan by train in just about 30 minutes, realizing the "2-hour transportation circle" of Zhejiang Province's railway coverage of all prefecture-level cities.