FIVE Metro lines in the city’s Phase IV rail network construction plan for 2017 to 2022 have been approved by the Central authorities, and construction will begin by the end of this year, sources from Shenzhen’s development and reform commission said.

The five lines comprise Lines 12, 13, 14 and 16 as well as a spur line of Line 6. The five lines will run a total of 148.9 kilometers and cost a combined 134.45 billion yuan (US$19.80 billion) to build.

Metro Line 6 runs 37.8 kilometers between Shenzhen North Railway Station and Songgang with 20 stations including six interchange stations. The second phase of Line 6 will extend 11.5 kilometers from Shenzhen North Railway Station to Shenzhen Science Museum. The whole line is expected to be open in June 2020.

The spur line of Line 6 will run 6.4 kilometers from Lilin Station to Sun Yat-sen University Station along Guangming Boulevard, Guangqiao Road and Rongchang Road.

Metro Line 12 will be a south-north rail line linking Nanshan and Bao’an districts. The 40-kilometer line will start from Chiwan in Shekou and end at Waterland Resort in Bao’an District. It will have 33 stations including 18 interchange stations.

The 23-kilometer Line 13 will start from Shenzhen Bay Checkpoint and run northward covering Nanshan, Bao’an and Guangming. In the future, it will be further extended to Songshan Lake in Dongguan.

The 51.9-kilometer Line 14 includes a main line and a spur line. It starts from Gangxia North Station and ends at the Shenzhen border with Huizhou in Pingshan District.

In the future, it will be extended to Huizhou South Railway Station. The spur line will run 14.1 kilometers starting from Aobei Station and ending at Xinsheng Station, passing Longgang CBD.

Metro Line 16 will start from Universiade Station in Longgang District and end at Tiantou Station. It will run 27.6 kilometers.

After the five lines are put into use in 2022, the city’s Metro network will consist of 15 Metro lines covering 570 kilometers.

(Han Ximin)