Introduction of Chengdu Transportation Hub Chengdu Connects the World

Chengdu’s conscious efforts in upgrading its infrastructure and especially its transportation system in recent years have greatly improved its capacity and efficiency to reach the outside world, while favorable location of the city at the intersection on the “One Belt and One Road” and the “Yangtze River Economic Belt” gives it the strategic role of the transportation hub in western China.

A transportation network of air traffic, rail transportation and expressways to extend its reach to other parts of China and foreign countries is taking form, promoting Chengdu’s role of top transportation hub in western China and making it one of the central cities in China.

Chengdu boasts the largest number of direct international flights in central and western China. Up to now, the city has opened 89 air fights to cities in the world and the air traffic network covers five continents of Asia, North America, Europe, Africa and Oceania. And with the opening of Chengdu-Sydney route, as scheduled in October, and the planned routes to Los Angeles and the New York City, the city will have more than 90 direct international fights to link more than half of the G20 member countries and greatly promote trading, tourism and cultural exchanges.

In September, Chengdu will host the 22nd World Route Development Forum 2016, which will be attended by over 3, 500 delegates from 350 airlines and 1,200 airports from the world. The event is believed to accelerate the expansion of the city’s global air traffic network, which will promote the exchange between Chengdu and the G20 countries.

Chengdu is pushing forward to build a high-speed network that will provide quick and efficient accessibility to other parts of China in order to realize the One-hour Reach to connect other cities in Sichuan, the Four-hour Reach to connect Wuhan and other cities, and the Eight-hour Reach to connect Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other cities.

At present, the city has four artery railways linking other parts of China and several inter-city high-speed railways linking other cities in Sichuan, and an ambitious plan to start a number of railways has been carried out, which will consolidate the status of the city as being the fifth rail transportation hub in China.

On June 8, China Railway held a departure ceremony for the express rail link between China and Europe simultaneously in Chengdu, Chongqing, Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Changsha, Suzhou, Dongguan and Yiwu. Among all the trains leaving from the above cities, the one numbered X8104 from Chengdu first arrived at the terminal in Europe.

Seizing opportunities brought about by the “Belt and Road Initiative” recently，Chengdu has worked out its “Chengdu-Europe Express Rail Cargo Service +” strategy, to build the central, north and south lines of the link, and ultimately to link the city and Europe and pan-Asian regions.

With the “Chengdu-Europe Express Rail Cargo Service +” strategy, Chengdu built international logistic channels and shows “Chengdu Speed” to the world.