A panel of experts in Shenzhen City of south China's Guangdong Province have approved a proposal to prolong two subways being constructed in order to reach two major industrial centers in the city.
According to the proposal, the No. 1 subway will be extended from the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone with 15 stops to reach theairport in Bao'an, a major industrial district in Shenzhen. Half of the extended subway's 23 kilometers will be underground and therest will be elevated above-ground.
In the meantime, the No. 4 subway will be prolonged to reach Longhua, another major industrial base in Shenzhen, with a total length of 16 kilometers and nine stops.
The two subways were originally designed to circle inside the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone, which makes up just 36.5 percent of Shenzhen City's total territory, but now there is a a growing need for facilitating the local traffic flow and construction, said an official from the Shenzhen Subway Company.
The official added they would soon work on detailed feasibilityreports about the extension of the two separate subways, and organize the initial design. The extension is expected to start atthe end of 2003.
The entire extension will cost 14.3 billion yuan (about 1.72 billion US dollars), of which 8.9 billion yuan (about 1.07 billionUS dollars) will go for prolonging the No. 1 subway.
(Xinhua News Agency March 8, 2003)
