Seventeen major transport projects costing 7.1 billion yuan ($1 billion) are underway this year to further connect the city's east and west wings, ease downtown traffic, and facilitate pedestrian street crossings.

For instance, the main and feeder lines for the Xianghai Bridge between Meihua and Xinfengwei interchanges will open by 2020 and the other sections will follow by 2021. The project is costing 800 million yuan ($116 million) this year. The more than 20-km Xianghai Bridge is a key east-west passage. The entire project is estimated at 4.28 billion yuan ($642 million).

Meanwhile, Honghe Bridge construction was allocated 500 million yuan ($73 million) this year. It will be ready before the 13th China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition (Airshow China) in November 2020, as will the Hezhou-Gaolan Port Expressway Phase I from Hezhou to the Airport Expressway. The 10-km Honghe Bridge is south of Zhuhai Avenue and will connect Hongwan of Nanping Town with the Jiangmen-Zhuhai Expressway Extension Line and Hezhou-Gaolan Port Expressway via the Hezhou South Interchange. To cost 1 billion yuan ($145 million) in 2019, work on the second phase will be completed by 2022.

Rendering of Xianghai Bridge

The agent-entrusted Jinhai Avenue Bridge section was integrated into the Zhuhai Airport Urban Rail Transit Phase II plan and came under construction in March 2018. The other sections will be in place by 2022.

Furthermore, tracklaying has been completed for the Zhuhai Airport Urban Rail Transit Phase I from Gongbei to Hengqin New Area, which will be in trial operation by year end. The Hengqin-Zhuhai (Jinwan) Airport section will cost 1.25 billion yuan ($182 million) in 2019 and open to traffic by 2023.

To address traffic jams, an express ring road network will take form in the central urban area. It will consist of Xianghai Feeder, Nanwan, North Lovers, and Gangwan avenues, Xingye and reserved Meihua express roads, and Changsheng Road.

Jinhai Avenue Bridge

Meanwhile, urban arterials including Renmin, Santaishi, and Yingbin roads and Jiuzhou Avenue are to handle heavy traffic flow. Sub-arterials such as Baishi Road's north, West Shihua Road's west, and Yinhua Road's west extension lines will be further extended. Preliminary work is underway.

Nine pedestrian overpasses will also be built this year. They will appear in areas with heavy foot traffic, including Changsheng Road (Zhuhai Station of the Guangzhou-Zhuhai Intercity MRT), Nanwan Avenue, Jinqin Express Road (Huafa Mall), and G228 Huangyang Avenue (Number 1 High School of Doumen). Initial work has started in heavy-vehicle-traffic areas such as the South Yingbin-Yuehua and North Yingbin-Anning intersections.

The Zhuhai Transport Bureau meanwhile will consider constructing pedestrian overpasses and tunnels along Gangwan and Zhuhai avenues and East Airport Road.

Zhuhai Airport Urban Rail Transit project [Photos courtesy WeChat acccount: zhuhaifabu]