The Shanghai municipal government said yesterday that the project, arguably the largest traffic transfer hub in the world, would be located near the Hongqiao Airport.

The municipal government approved the "Hongqiao Transportation Hub" plan in March last year, but made the details public yesterday.

Shanghai government spokeswoman Jiao Yang said the Hongqiao project will "better serve the needs not only of the Yangtze River Delta, but also of the entire country". The hub is to cover Hongqiao Airport and become the terminal of the proposed Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway.

The facility's main structure will have two underground stations, serving the city's five metro stations.