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BEIJING, May 3, 2021 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

In October 1988, the Shanghai-Jiading Expressway, the first in the Chinese

mainland, officially opened to traffic. With this milestone, the development of

China's highway network got on the fast track. Now, the total mileage of

highways in China has reached over 160,000 kilometers, ranking first in the

world.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9m_17BpJWok

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Join CGTN on a road trip as we explore and get to know the most notable

expressways in the country.

The first in Chinese mainland – Shanghai-Jiading Expressway

The high-speed section of the Shanghai-Jiading Expressway starts from the south

of Shanghai's downtown area to Jiading District, with a total length of 15.9

km. The construction of this expressway accounts for 56 percent of the

passenger and freight traffic on the Huyi Highway between the urban area and

Jiading. It provides a good template for the construction of highways in other

cities in China.

The busiest – Beijing-Hong Kong-Macao Expressway

The Beijing-Hong Kong-Macao Expressway starts from the Chinese capital and

extends to the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, stretching

over 2,285 km.

Called the "Golden Channel," it is the busiest artery of north-south traffic in

China running between some of China's most economically developed areas.

The longest – Lianyungang-Khorgos Expressway

The Lianyungang-Khorgos Expressway opened to traffic on December 31, 2014 with

a total length of 4,395 km extending from the eastern coast of Jiangsu Province

to the western border of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It boasts the title

of the "longest expressway in China" and is an important traffic artery along

the Belt and Road.

Thanks to this highway, a freight truck setting out from Lianyungang now takes

10 days to reach Europe, crossing plains, mountains, plateaus and deserts. By

sea, the trip from the same starting point to the same destination would have

taken 45 days.

The Lianyungang-Khorgos Expressway is rich in cultural treasures. There are 24

national 5A scenic spots along the way, including the Terracotta Warriors,

Longmen Grottoes and Shaolin Temple, making it a good choice for a road trip.

The longest expressway passing through desert – Beijing-Urumqi Expressway

The Beijing-Urumqi Expressway has a total length of 2,540 km and passes through

five provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions. It opened up the fastest

route from northwest China's Khorgos in Xinjiang to the northern port city of

Tianjin.

The 930-km section of the Beijing-Urumqi Expressway in Inner Mongolia is a

desert zone, which makes this expressway the longest highway in the world

passing through the desert.

The most difficult construction – Shanghai-Chongqing Expressway

The Shanghai-Chongqing Expressway is 1,768 km long and opened to traffic in

2010. It is China's first expressway that runs through the Yangtze River Delta

area.

The section passes through the central province of Hubei and has an average

altitude of 1,100 meters. The complicated geological conditions made this

expressway extremely difficult to construct.

The Shanghai-Chongqing Expressway shortened the transport of hotpot ingredients

from Chongqing Municipality in the country's southwest to Shanghai on China's

eastern coast from three days to just 17 hours.

Highest honor award – Jing-Wu-Huang (Chang) Expressway

The Jing-Wu-Huang (Chang) Expressway has a total length of about 152 km. This

Y-shaped expressway connects the three eastern provinces of Jiangxi, Anhui and

Zhejiang.

Although the road is not long, natural landscapes and cultural assets are in

abundance along the way.

Engineers steered clear from ancient villages, rivers, and rare bird habitats

and none of the hundreds of century-old camphor trees along the route were

damaged. For this it won the highest award in China's civil engineering – the

Zhan Tianyou Award.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-05-01/Amazing-Roads-Get-to-know-China-s-most-exceptional-expressways-ZT8FK9IEsE/index.html

SOURCE  CGTN

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