Connectivity will lift Zhuhai as Greater Bay keystone

A new round of infrastructure construction is about to begin to position Zhuhai as a prominent Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area transport hub on the west bank of the Pearl River Estuary.

To achieve this, a task force has been established to boost connectivity of Greater Bay Area transport infrastructure while a 2019-25 work plan has been formulated, Lin Yuehai, director of the Zhuhai Transport Bureau, announced at a conference on June 19.

Qingmao Checkpoint, or New Guangdong-Macao Channel, covers 28,000 sq m (7 acres) over the Canal de Patos. It will connect Zhuhai Railway Station in Gongbei to Macao Light Rail Transit, expedite construction, and link up with other public transport in Zhuhai in time for the 20th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland.

A blueprint for the new Hengqin Checkpoint and comprehensive transport hub will show a connection with the Macao LRT and integration of Macao into the national high-speed railway network.

New Hengqin Checkpoint and comprehensive transport hub [Photo by Li Jianshu / Zhujiang Evening Post]

Meanwhile, the transport systems on the engineered islands of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) will be optimized. Construction of pipelines on the bridge island, as well as the plan for the tunnel under the island and Jiuzhou Avenue between Gongbei and Jida will be pushed forward. HZMB operation and management will be improved through innovation, using research into the liberal commute of Hong Kong vehicles to Zhuhai.

The connection between the sea bridge and Hengqin New Area will also be strengthened. Nanwan and South Lovers avenues and Shizimen Tunnel will be built to serve the new urban center integrating Hengqin, Hongwan, Zhuhai Free Trade Zone, Wanzai, and Shizimen.

Land will be reserved for the Shenzhen-Zhuhai Railway and Lingding Highway-Railway Channel. A goal is to include it in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25). The Guangdong Provincial Department of Transport is currently compiling a feasibility report. 

Moreover, better connections are planned with the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Corridor sea channel, Jinqin Express Road north extension line, and Zhongshan East Outer Ring Expressway. Phase II of a north extension line will come under construction soon.

Opening more to western Guangdong, the city will support the Guangdong Transport Group in preliminary work on the Huangmao Sea Channel, which is to come under construction in 2020 and open in 2023.

The possibility of the Guangzhou-Zhuhai Railway being used for passenger transport with a double-track design will also be explored. Plans for Gaolan Port Express Road, Jingang Bridge, and Jinwan Comprehensive Transport Hub will be drawn to support the Jiangmen-Zhuhai High-End Industry Agglomeration Area. 

Rendering of expanded Zhuhai (Jinwan) Airport [Photo provided by Zhuhai Aviation City & Airport Group]

Work on professionalized wharfs, deep-water berths, and port logistics facilities will be accelerated. The Wanshan islands will be bolstered as a transshipment hub port of the Pearl River Estuary in synergy with Hong Kong and Macao.

The Zhuhai Transport Bureau has also been entrusted by the Transport Planning & Research Institute of the Ministry of Transport to research the integrated development of the port and city based on bonded business.

In terms of aviation, a Zhuhai Airport Economic Zone and opening of international air routes are envisioned by planners.

Furthermore, construction on the 200,000-sq-m (49-acre) T2 of Zhuhai (Jinwan) Airport is expected to commence in October. A revised overall plan will be submitted by the end of the year. Construction of a transport hub will commence in the first half of 2020 and be completed by 2022, by when it will handle 25 million to 30 million passengers.

The city government will brief the National Reform & Development Commission and China State Railway Group on its high-speed railway planning and construction. Research on the Guangzhou-Jiangmen-Zhuhai-Macao and Shenzhen-Zhuhai high-speed railways is expected to be put on agenda.

In the meantime, a Six Horizontal & Ten Vertical road network is to take form. Expansion of the Banzhang Mt Tunnel, Jinqin Express Road, and Honghe Bridge is set for completion in 2020. Construction of Xingye Express Road's north section and a feeder for Yingbin Road will be completed in 2021, while that of Xingye Express Road's south section, Xianghai and Hezhou-Gaolan Port expressways, Jinhai Avenue Bridge, Gaolan Port Express Road, and the Third Hengqin Channel will finish in 2022. The expansion of Zhuhai Bridge will be completed in 2025.

What's more, a recent construction plan for rail transit Lines 1 and 2 will be submitted to State authorities. Preliminary research on the extension of Guangzhou rail transit Line 18 to Zhuhai via Zhongshan and new-round planning on Zhuhai's urban rail transit network will be conducted. The urban rail transit Phase I is expected to be launched during the 14th Five-Year Plan.