Hong Kong's Legislative Council approved 70 billion HK dollars (about 9 billion U.S. dollars) expenditure to build the Sha Tin to Central rail link, and the construction will start in the middle of this year, the city's government said Friday,

The project has been delayed for eight months due to a court case on an environmental impact assessment.

Secretary for Transport and Housing of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government Eva Cheng said the construction will now proceed as scheduled, with the Tai Wai to Hung Hom section due for completion by 2018, and the Hung Hom to Admiralty section set for 2020.

The 17 km railway will have 10 stations connecting Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories, and will improve transport links in old areas like To Kwa Wan and Ma Tau Wai.

Passengers will be able to commute from Tai Wai to Diamond Hill, and Hung Hom to Admiralty, in five minutes.

The link extends the East Rail Line across Victoria Harbor, allowing passengers from Lo Wu to reach Hong Kong Island directly.

It connects the Ma On Shan Line with the West Rail Line, enabling passengers to travel directly from Wu Kai Sha Station to eastern Kowloon, the western New Territories and Tuen Mun without interchanging.