Wang Yuanyuan

    A TRANSPORT network will be built in Shenzhen to ease the city’s traffic congestion, making it easier for residents to travel.

    Mayor Xu Qin made the remark at Thursday’s press conference for the closing of this year’s session of Municipal People’s Congress.

    Shenzhen plans to build an expressway network across the city in five years to shorten the distances between different areas. The key area of construction will be the east of the city, including road upgrading and building, he said.

    Hiking track systems and sidewalk systems will also be built to encourage cycling and walking.

    The city also plans to become a “city of public transportation” and preferential policies will be given to those who abandon their private cars and choose to travel on buses and Metros.

    Construction of the third phase of the Metro is expected to be finished by 2015.

    However, Xu said Shenzhen had no plan to introduce a similar system to Beijing’s selecting registration plates. “We are studying management experience in major cities around the world. We think introducing information technology will be a more effective way of controlling traffic congestion in the long term,” said Xu.

    Living standard

    More investment will be made in areas such as education, health, traffic and employment to improve residents’ lives in the city, Xu said.

    About 11.3 billion yuan (US$1.79 billion) will be spent on education this year, while 5 billion yuan will be given to help promote the city’s medical reforms.

    More preferential policies and subsidies will be given to low-income families this year.

    ‘Quality Shenzhen’

    The promotion of the concept “Quality Shenzhen” will continue this year, helping the city improve in the political, economic, urban construction and cultural spheres.

    After 30 years of rapid development, Shenzhen is now seeking opportunities for industrial transformation and upgrading, so a stable growth environment is more important than GDP, said Xu.

    New industries, such as the biological industry, high-tech industry and creative cultural industry will be the future’s core areas to improve the city’s “quality.”

    HK-SZ cooperation

    Shenzhen will also seek more cooperation opportunities with Hong Kong in the coming years, such as cross-border facility construction, new checkpoint construction and airport link construction.

    The construction of Qianhai area will also be promoted this year. “At present, several cooperation projects in Hong Kong is now being reviewed by the Central Government. We hope the Qianhai construction will start soon to pilot the development of the country’s modern service industry,” Xu said.

    Food safety

    Stricter measures will be taken to ensure the city’s food safety this year.

    More products will be inspected by the supervision department and stricter punishments will be given to those who violated related regulations.

    Plans for kitchen waste disposal and swill oil disposal will be made soon to prevent restaurants from illegal activities, Xu said.

    Housing policy

    The city will continue the implementation of the country’s policy in real estate industry such as restrictions on housing purchases, Xu said.

    However, the city will provide more affordable and government-subsidized housing to residents to meet their living demands.

    Construction on urban upgrading will also be sped up and stricter supervision measures will be taken to prevent speculation, he said.