Richard Han

ximhan@126.com

A LIVE-WIRE test was conducted Friday as Phase I of Metro Line 8 entered the period of joint tests and trial operations, marking another step closer for the line to become operational before the end of the year.

Phase I of Line 8, the first Metro line in Yantian, starts from Wutong South Station and ends at Yantian Road.

The whole line is 12.34 kilometers long and has six stations.

It will be further extended to Dameisha and Xiaomeisha stations eastward, and at its west end it will be connected with the eastern extension of Line 2 at Liantang Station.

The section between Liantang and Yantian Road stations in Yantian District is built underground and will pass through Xianhu, Liantang, Wutong Mountain and Shatoujiao, while the remaining part from Yantian Road Station to Kuichong in Dapeng New Area, via Xiaomeisha and Dameisha stations, will be built on elevated bridges.

The route is expected to remove bottlenecks that cause heavy traffic in eastern Shenzhen, especially during weekends and holidays.

By the end of the year, three new Metro stations and three extension lines will be put into operation, bringing the total length of the city’s Metro lines to more than 400 kilometers.

Two new Metro lines, 6 and 10, have been put on test runs and will be open to the public this August.

Metro Line 6 starts from Songgang Station in Bao’an and ends at Shenzhen Science Museum Station in Futian District, passing through Bao’an, Guangming, Longhua, Futian and Luohu districts.

Line 6 runs 49.3 kilometers, and has 27 stations. It is the first Metro line in Guangming. The whole trip takes about 66 minutes.

Shenzhen Metro Line 10 starts from Futian Checkpoint Station and ends at Shuangyongjie Station in Longgang District.

The 29.3-kilometer rail passes Futian and Longgang districts, spanning 24 stations. The north-south line will cut the trip between Futian Checkpoint and Pinghu to 45 minutes. It will greatly relieve the traffic pressure between Futian CBD and Bantian.