Han Ximin

    ximhan@126.com

    A TWO-WAY, six-lane elevated expressway running 62 kilometers above Jihe Expressway will be built to ease traffic on the expressway, which will be overburdened with traffic after the opening of the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Corridor and Shenzhen’s Outer Ring Expressway.

    Six interchange flyovers will be built to link the new elevated expressway and the ground-level expressway, according to a news conference by the Shenzhen transport commission Thursday, which unveiled the plans for eight traffic projects.

    The expressway between Jichang South Road and Luzi Boulevard will be expanded.

    The west-east Jihe Expressway is often heavily loaded with vehicles. The Shenzhen-Zhongshan Corridor, scheduled to open in 2024, will connect to the expressway, which has experienced greater traffic pressure since the establishment of the Shenzhen-Shanwei Special Cooperation Zone.

    A new expressway will connect the zone to Jihe Expressway in the east, according to the plans.

    Nanping Expressway will be extended westward to link the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Riverside Expressway and the western bank of the Pearl River through the planned Shenzhen-Zhuhai Corridor. The project is expected to increase Shenzhen’s sphere of influence, especially for Qianhai.

    A new trunk road, Baopeng Passage, linking Xixiang Boulevard in the west and Nanping Expressway in the east, will also be built. 

    The 53.2-km road will take the form of tunnels and elevated bridges to pass through built-up urban areas and have 16 interchanges linking other roads. Upon completion of the passage, the travel time from Qianhai and Bao’an CBD to Pingshan CBD will be shortened to within one hour.

    The 21-km Longda Expressway will be expanded to eight lanes and renovated in three phases. Five tollgates along the expressway will be dismantled.

    The 31.5-km Yantian-Baguang Expressway, part of the provincial expressway S30, will be expanded with auxiliary roads and two interchanges with the Outer Ring Road and Huancheng West Road.

    Regarding urban roads, Qiaocheng East Road will be extended to Fulong Flyover and Huanggang Road will be renovated with more underpasses and ground interchanges to enhance its connectivity.

    The Shenzhen Bay area of Binhai Boulevard, where the super headquarters base is located, will be renovated with an underground tunnel to relieve future congestion caused by land and business development.

    According to Shenzhen’s expressway and trunk road plan, which was approved last month by the city government, the city will form a network with three horizontal roads and 13 vertical roads that run a total of 1,041 kilometers.