Realizing the leaping development of China’s expressways will become the engine of economic prosperity.

Topic: picture channel

　　

　　Dai Dongchang, Director of the Highway Department of the Ministry of Communications, answered a reporter’s question. China Net Yang Nan Photography

　　Speaking at a news conference today (18th) about the development of national highways, Dai Dongchang, director of the Highway Department of the Ministry of Communications, said that the expressway construction in China started very late, but the rapid and leap-forward development has greatly improved the social and economic mobility of our country. It should be said that the great development of the whole highway traffic, including expressways, has supported the rapid development of our country’s social economy.

　　Looking back on the development of national highways, Dai Dongchang thinks that there are three characteristics:

　　First, it started very late. The first expressway was opened to traffic in 1988, and it was a short experimental road, which was a section of expressway from Shanghai to Jiading. Compared with developed countries and even many developing countries in the world, we started very late.

　　Second, the initial stage of development is relatively slow. We lacked experience in technology, capital, policy and so on in the initial stage of expressway construction. Therefore, at the beginning, the primary stage is relatively slow. It took us more than ten years to build the first 10,000-highway expressway.

　　Third, accelerate quickly. With the unification of people’s understanding and the accumulation of experience, especially with the new demand of social and economic development in our country, expressway construction began to accelerate in the middle and late 1990s. So we spent three years on the second 10,000 km, from 20,000 to 30,000, from 30,000 to 40,000, and from 40,000 to 50,000, respectively, and we can see the speed and construction progress. It should be said that China’s expressway construction has achieved a historic breakthrough and a leap-forward development, and this achievement has attracted worldwide attention. In particular, in a developing country like ours, its construction process was built by using the innovative mechanism of policies. Many international organizations and foreign counterparts, including the World Bank, are envious and appreciative of our achievements.

　　Dai Dongchang said that it is precisely because of the rapid development of expressways and the phased construction achievements of national expressways with the national trunk line "five verticals and seven horizontals" that the social and economic mobility of our country has been greatly improved. It should be said that the great development of the whole highway traffic, including expressways, has supported the rapid development of our country’s social economy. At the same time, as a large channel such as expressway, it is beneficial to coordinate the coordinated development between urban and rural areas and regions.

　　Dai Dongchang said that when the United States evaluated the 40th anniversary of the interstate highway, there were two comments. First, it said that the American interstate highway was the engine to promote the economic prosperity and development of the United States in the past 40 years. Second, this American investment in interstate highways is one of the best public investments in history.

　　Dai Dongchang said that with the acceleration and continuous improvement of the construction process of our national expressway network, our national expressway will surely play a greater role.

　　At 10: 00 a.m. on December 18th, the State Council Press Office held a press conference, and asked Weng Mengyong, Vice Minister of Communications, to introduce the planning and implementation of the "five vertical and seven horizontal" national trunk lines and answer reporters’ questions. Also present were Mr. Dong Xuebo, Director of the Comprehensive Planning Department of the Ministry of Communications, and Mr. Dai Dongchang, Director of the Highway Department. Live broadcast by China Network.

Editor: Yu Qingqing