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July 7, 2016

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Home » Metro » Society

Ferries and ramps planned for islands

By Ma Yue | July 7, 2016, Thursday | Print Edition

CHONGMING County will make it easier to travel between the islands and downtown Shanghai by modifying highway ramps and adding car-only ferries, said an official.

On a local radio program yesterday morning, County Director Tang Hailong said: “As a tourism destination, Chongming has good reasons to improve water transport between Chongming, Changxing and Hengsha islands and downtown by introducing two car-only fast ferries.”

According to Tang, each ferry will have a capacity of 78 cars and will operate between Nanmen Port in Chongming and Shidongkou Port in Baoshan District.

The voyage will take 45 minutes, at least 30 minutes less than a trip on a normal ferry between the two ports. Tang said the ferries will be put into operation next spring.

As for road transport, modifications will be made to the ramps connecting the G40 Highway and Chenhai Road. Chenhai Road is Chongming Island’s major east-west link, while the G40, or Shanghai-Shaanxi Highway, is a major highway connecting Chongming to downtown Shanghai. Changjiang Tunnel and Changjiang Bridge are part of the G40.

According to Tang, Changjiang Tunnel saw an average daily traffic volume of 35,000 vehicles last year, and congestion can easily occur at the tunnel-bridge section during festivals and holidays. The section handles as many as 5,000 cars per hour in one direction on peak days, which is nearly 40 percent more than it was designed to handle.

The latest congestion was reported on May 2, the last day of the Labor Day holiday, when cars from Chongming had to wait in a 25-kilometer queue for hours before reaching downtown.

Tang said the county plans to broaden two ramps connecting the G40 and Chenhai Road, and add an elevated section for the ramps.

Tang also said the county will continue to promote environmentally friendly transport on the islands this year by putting more electric buses into service along routes such as Chengqiao No. 1, Dongtan No. 1 and Nanbao Line.

Meanwhile, the construction of 168 service centers for electric car rental on the island will be completed by September, officials revealed.

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