City approves express tunnel, bridge, widened roads

A proposal to construct the 4.8-km (3-mile) South Section of the north-south Xingye Express Road superhighway has been approved by the city government. It consists of widened roads, bridges, and tunnel from Central Jiuzhou Avenue in Jida to East Meihua Road in New Xiangzhou.

The Zhuhai Development & Reform Bureau announced that 5 billion yuan ($784 million) has been budgeted to further relieve traffic pressure on the Banzhang Mt Tunnel and better connect the north and south.

South-north Xingye Express Road South Section from Jiuzhou Avenue in Jida (at left) to East Meihua Road in New Xiangzhou

Specifically, the project starts off near the intersection of Jiuzhou Avenue, First Jianye Road, and Bailian Road near White Lotus Cave (Bailiandong) Park. First Jianye and Bailian roads will be widened from two to eight lanes. The route then bridges Bailian Road before tunneling under Shijing Mt and Jida Reservoir to First Xiangning Street, which will be widened to one-way three lanes. Huwan Road between Xiangxi and Ningxi roads will be expanded from two to four lanes, and Xingye Road will go from four to six lanes to East Meihua Road. The route crosses Ningxi, Renmin, and Yinhua roads to meet the express North Section.  

Transverse section [Photos provided by Zhuhai Transportation Bureau]

Construction will soon commence on roads, bridge, tunnel, pipelines, and lighting, with traffic control, safety supervision, and green landscaping to follow.

Work on the North Section, which commenced last December and is expected to be completed in 2020, and the south section will further improve north-south rapid transit and contribute to the blueprinted "Nine Vertical & Five Horizontal" urban road structure. With a speed limit of 60 kmph (32.4 mph), it will be a crucial link between the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Cross-River Channel and Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao bridges.

Xingye Express Road North Section under construction [Photo courtesy WeChat account (ID:stecTALK)]