Han Ximin
THE southern side of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway reopens today at noon after a three-month facelift, sources with the expressway said.
The opening of the section from Shigu Flyover in Dongguan to Xintang Flyover in Guangzhou, eight days ahead of schedule, is in time for the approaching month-long Spring Festival travel peak during which many will hit the road for family reunions.
The travel peak will start Jan. 23 and is expected to continue until March 3.
After the travel season, the expressway company will seal the northern side of this section and initiate a four-month-long renovation project.
Vehicles from Shenzhen will be diverted to National Highway 107 and Provincial Highway 256.
The company previously considered sealing the southern side during the travel peak, but dropped the plan as it might cause major traffic jams during the Spring Festival travel season.
The Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway is the busiest road leaving Shenzhen and has been in use for 13 years. Some parts of the road have been badly damaged by heavy vehicles and trucks. It is used by about 90,000 vehicles a day on average and frequent traffic jams are seen during peak hours.
To reduce the congestion, Guangdong is working on the construction of a second expressway linking Shenzhen and Guangzhou. Upon completion in 2010, the 89-kilometer expressway, running across Dongjiang River, bypassing Dongguan and ending in Shenzhen’s Shekou, is expected to cut travel time from Shenzhen to Guangzhou to one hour.
Guangdong’s first expressway, the Guangzhou-Foshan Expressway, opened to traffic in 1989. By the end of last year, the total length of expressways in the province had reached 3,440 kilometers.
Expressways need to be renovated after being used for eight to 15 years, according to the company. In addition to the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway and Dongguan-Shenzhen Expressway, sections of the Guangzhou-Huizhou Expressway, Beijng-Zhuhai Expressway and Guangzhou-Foshan Expressway are also being renovated. Renovation of the Shenzhen-Shantou and Foshan-Kaiping expressways will begin soon.