SCIO briefing on building China's strength in transport
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E-mail China.org.cn, September 26, 2019
CCTV:
What is the central idea of The Outline for Building China’s Strength in Transport? And as this year marks the 70th anniversary of the PRC’s founding, what achievements has China made in regard to its transportation sector? Thank you.
Li Xiaopeng:
Since the PRC’s founding in 1949, China’s transportation sector has made remarkable progress and experienced historic change. These achievements could never have been accomplished without the strong leadership of the CPC, the huge support from various sectors of society and the Chinese people, as well as the hard work of generations of veterans devoted to China’s transport endeavor.
Here are some statistics for your reference. First is about the transportationinfrastructure.
In regard to railways, by the end of 2018, China's total length of railway in operation reached 132,000km, a five-fold increase from 1949. High-speed rail has been developed from scratch and topped 29,000km by the end of 2018, ranking first in the world.
As for the road network, the total length of roads in operation nationwide was 4.847 million kilometers, 60 times that of 1949. We also began building of our expressways from scratch, and its total length is now 143,000 kilometers, longer than in any other country around the world.
In terms of water transport, the total length ofnavigablewaterways reached 127,000 kilometers, 1.7 times that of 1949. This includes 66,000 kilometers of high-grade waterways. There are in total 23,919 productive berths at ports, including 2,379 10-thousand-metric-ton level berths, around the country, 148.6 times more than we had in 1949. Seven out of the top 10 ports in the world in terms of cargo are in China, namely, Ningbo-Zhoushan No.1, Shanghai No.2, Tangshan No.3, Guangzhou No.5, Qingdao No.6, Suzhou No.7 and Tianjin No.9.
In regard to the development of civil aviation, there are now 235 certified civil transport airports in China. This includes 37 airports which can handle an annual passenger turnover of more than 10 million trips. By the end of 2018, the total number of scheduled flight routes reached 4,945, which was 412.1 times more than what we had in 1950.
In regard to the postal service, by the end of 2018, the total length of postal routes was 9.85 million kilometers, and the number of postal outlets/stations reached 275,000. This is respectively 14 times and 10.4 times more than what we had in 1949.
In addition to the transport infrastructure, remarkable progress has also been made in our transportation capacity. In 2018, 17.9 billion passenger trips were completed, 131 times that of 1949; 50.6 billion tons of cargo was carried through the main transport modes, 271 times that of 1949.
Still, we are keenly aware that there is room for improvement in the development of China’s transportation endeavor. For example, more infrastructure needs to be completed, especially for those in remote and impoverished areas. This remains an urgent issue, and needs to be addressed to build China’s strength in transportation.
Li Xiaopeng:
The 18th National Congress of the CPC made an important decision to build China’s strength in its transportation sector. I’ve mentioned earlier that this is a crucial move of the CPC Central Committee, and I think it is of tremendous importance in the following four aspects:
First, building China’s strength in its transportation sector provides convenience for our people.Second, building China’s strength in its transportation sector facilitates the country’s development. Third, building China’s strength in its transportation sector meets the requirement in the new era. Fourth, building China’s strength in its transportation sector adheres to the problem-oriented principle, and promotes the high-quality development of China’s transportation sector.
With the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the central idea of The Outline for Building China’s Strength in Transport is to implement the guiding principles of the 19th CPC National Congress, focusing on transport sector as well as China's overall development in the future. The Outline has the following two highlights:
First, China stays committed to the underlying principle of pursuing progress while ensuring stability. We follow the new development philosophy, fulfill the requirement for high-quality development, take supply-side structural reform as our main task, and adhere to the people-centered development philosophy and endeavor.
Second, Chinais working to transform the model of development in its transport sector in three aspects. This includes transforming from a speed- and scale-centered development into one focusing on quality and efficiency; to transform from a comparatively isolated development model into a comprehensive transportation model; and to transform from a factor-driven model into an innovation-driven one.
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