Beijing Youth Daily: 

I noticed that netizens have recently given Shandong a new title, calling it the "First Province of High-speed Rail in China." The reason is that as the governor mentioned, the length of in-service high-speed railways in Shandong has reached 2,810 kilometers, ranking first in the country. As the gateway to the outside world in the Yellow River Basin, how will Shandong expand and strengthen its transportation advantages and better play a leading role? Thank you.

Zhou Naixiang:

Thank you. I'll answer this question.

With strong transportation, all industries thrive. Shandong is the first province in the country to build a strong transportation demonstration zone with relevant ministries. In recent years, we have accelerated the construction of a modern, comprehensive, multidimensional transportation network and achieved positive results.

In terms of railways, the construction of "Shandong on the tracks" has been accelerated.

Within the province, the high-speed rail network continues to expand, with five new high-speed rail lines completed in the past three years. A total of 145 trains per day operate on the Jinan-Qingdao high-speed rail line, achieving "bus-like" operations.

Outside the province, there are now four high-speed rail corridors connecting Shandong to other provinces. Currently, there are seven high-speed rail lines under construction. Once completed, the total length of high-speed railways in Shandong will exceed 4,300 kilometers, realizing high-speed rail access to every city and seven corridors reaching other provinces.

In terms of freight railways, the backbone freight railway network of "Four Verticals and Four Horizontals" continues to improve, with a total length of 5,018 kilometers, and all main lines have been electrified.

Regarding highways, the urban and rural road networks are becoming increasingly dense.

In the past two years, 14 expressways have been completed and opened to traffic, and 33 are under construction. The total length of expressways in operation has exceeded 8,400 kilometers, 36.6% of which are composed of six or more lanes.

The nation's first zero-carbon smart highway, the Jinan-Weifang Expressway, has been completed and opened to traffic. The scale of rural road networks has reached 264,000 kilometers, achieving the goal of "every village connected by asphalt road, every household connected by hardened road."

In terms of airports, solid progress has been made in constructing airport clusters.

The 4F-class Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport has been completed and put into operation. The second construction phase of Yantai Airport has been finished, while Jining Da'an Airport has been relocated and is now operational. The second construction phase of Jinan Airport has also been accelerated. 

Moving forward, we will continue to expedite the development of transportation infrastructure, with a planned investment of 325 billion yuan in transportation this year.

First, we will accelerate the establishment of a comprehensive transportation network. Situated in proximity to Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei in the north, connected to the Yangtze River Delta in the south, neighboring Japan and South Korea in the east, and linked to the Belt and Road in the west, Shandong possesses natural advantages for constructing an interconnected transportation network. Following the strategy of ensuring smooth channels, weaving dense networks, strengthening hubs, and promoting improvement and upgrades, we will actively construct 10 major transport infrastructure channels featuring four horizontal and five vertical routes, stretching along the Yellow River and connecting with the sea. We will also expedite the construction of world-class port clusters.

We will accelerate the planning and construction of the Laiwu-Linyi high-speed railway. Upon completion, the railway will unleash tremendous potential in the hinterland of Shandong, including the Yimeng Mountain area.

Second, we will speed up efforts to improve the efficiency of transportation services. The freight logistics system will be optimized, further promoting road-to-rail and road-to-waterway transfer and the vigorous development of multimodal and sea-rail intermodal transport. More than 2,300 China-Europe freight trains departing from Shandong will be operated this year. We will implement freight railway network coordination, expansion, and enhancement projects, with nine renovated railway projects, including the line from Dongjiakou to Yishui.

We will promote comprehensive transport services with a single ticket system, a single document system, and a single container system, facilitating the seamless movement of people and goods.

Third, we will accelerate the development of new business forms in smart transportation. By incorporating intelligent technologies into Shandong's transportation infrastructure, we will actively develop replicable and applicable applications, such as autonomous driving and fully automated port operations. This will empower transportation development with smart technologies.

In conclusion, we will fully leverage the pioneering role of transportation to explore new paths and contribute to boosting China's strength in transportation from Shandong. Thank you.