Eight subway lines, scheduled to open to traffic between 2013 and 2015, will link up all parts of Beijing, the capital of China, which has been plagued with high traffic for years.
Yesterday Beijing launched the construction of eight new subways and released their scheduled opening times. Construction has begun on five lines, including the west section of line No.15 and the second phase of line No.6, which are expected to open in 2014.
The rear section of the Haidianshan Line and line No.16, estimated to open in 2015, as well as the Yanfang Line, which will start to run in 2013, are listed in the Beijing railway networking planning for the year of 2015. Yesterday those three lines started preliminary construction as well.
With total investments of 12.5 billion dollars in these eight lines, Beijing plans to stretch the subway’s reach into every corner of the city. An extension of existing track by 113.7 kilometers will ensure the connection of the periphery and downtown centers.
The 2015 planning intensifies its version based on the previous 561-kilometrer length track lines. The newly-added 100 kilometers are designed to increase the density of downtown track networks in order to ease the high traffic pressure.
Line No.16 stands first in this special group for this current round of construction, said Chen Xi, Planning Chief of Beijing Municipal Track Transportation Construction Management Co., Ltd.
Global travelers in Beijing will find it easier to escape the traffic while touring Beijing by taking the Xijiao Line. It links up the maple spectacle Fragrant Hill, the Botanic Garden, Wanaan Cemetery and the ancient imperial garden at the Summer Palace. The line is the known the first rail track in Beijing to use trams.
Rear section of Haidianshan bridges the high-tech side of Haidian and the administrative side of Haidian in the downtown area. Yanfang Line, the westward extension of the Fangshan Line, is created especially to spur the travel industry in Fangshan District.
