Toll collections will start on Xianghai and Honghe bridges later this year as part of Zhuhai's traffic management plans, officials of the Zhuhai Transportation Bureau announced during an interview on May 20.

Honghe Bridge will officially start toll collections on July 1, while ETC holders will have to pay for the toll starting from next year.

Drivers will pay 0.60 yuan (9 cents) for every km to cross the 9.65-km (6-mile) charging section of the bridge. Vehicles with fewer than nine seats will be charged 5.79 yuan (91 cents) for each trip. 

Toll collections will also start for the operational sections of Hezhou-Gaolan Port Expressway from July 1. Vehicles on the four-lane expressway between the Hezhou North and South interchanges will pay 0.45 yuan (7 cents) per km, while those on the six-lane expressway between Hezhou South and Gaolan Port interchanges need to pay 0.60 yuan for every km. Phase II of the Hezhou-Gaolan Port Expressway is expected to open to traffic in the first half of 2023. 

Honghe Bridge [Photo by Ye Qiuming / WeChat account:zhuhaifabu]

Xianghai Bridge is set to open before the 14th China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition (Airshow China), which will take place at the Zhuhai International Air Show Center in Jinwan from Nov 8 to 13. Its toll standards are currently waiting for approval and will begin after this year's Airshow China.

To relieve traffic pressure in downtown areas, Zhuhai plans to carry out comprehensive transportation management over the next three years, focusing on road supply improvement, parking space optimization, and traffic management optimization.

Renovation of 10 major arterial roads, including Renmin, Fenghuang, South Yingbin, and Meihua roads, Nanwan Avenue, and National Expressway G105 (Gudu Avenue), has been listed among Zhuhai's Top 10 Livelihood Projects for 2022 and is expected to complete by the end of the year.

A high-quality high-speed commuter bus line able to access expressways in the city will be opened, while charted bus routes for students will start pilot operation to relieve traffic congestion around Wenyuan, Zijin, Jiuzhou, and Meihua middle schools.

In addition, designing for the fast pass renovation of Jiuzhou Avenue is currently underway, as is the feasibility study for three tunnels of the Renmin Road project under Jingye, Hongshan, and Santaishi roads. Renovations of East Renmin Road will finish this year, while an overpass crossing Mingzhu Road will start construction by the end of the year as part of the West Renmin Road renovation project.

Pedestrian overpasses are scheduled to be built over roads, including East Meihua, North Haibin, and Huxin roads. Underpasses for pedestrians will also be constructed under North Haibin Road and Gangwan Avenue.