On the 16th, the construction mobilization meeting for the Yancheng-Nantong Railway was held in Yancheng. Jiangsu Vice Governor Lan Shaomin attended and spoke. The railway is jointly funded by China Railway Corporation and the Jiangsu Provincial People's Government, with a planned construction period of 4 years. Once completed, travel time from Yancheng to Shanghai will be shortened from the current 3.5-4 hours (by long-distance bus) to about 1 hour. The Yancheng-Nantong Railway starts from Yancheng Station on the Xuzhou-Suqian-Huai'an-Yancheng Railway and ends at the under-construction Nantong West Station on the Shanghai-Nantong Railway. Part of the Nantong West to Zhangjiagang section of the Nantong-Suzhou-Jiaxing Railway will be built simultaneously. The total length is 188 kilometers, with a designed speed target of 350 km/h. The total investment is 30.55 billion yuan, and the construction period is 4 years. After completion, the project will connect with the Xuzhou-Suqian-Huai'an-Yancheng Railway and the Shanghai-Nantong Railway to form an important diversion channel south of Xuzhou on the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail corridor.
Lan Shaomin said that in recent years, Jiangsu Province's railway construction has maintained a good momentum of accelerated progress. However, from a provincial perspective, railways, especially high-speed railways, remain a prominent "shortcoming" in Jiangsu's comprehensive transportation system, with unbalanced development between regions, particularly insufficient development in the central and northern parts of Jiangsu. The Yancheng-Nantong Railway is an important part of the national coastal corridor and an important transportation artery connecting the two major national strategies of the "Belt and Road" initiative and the Yangtze River Economic Belt development. Accelerating the construction of the Yancheng-Nantong Railway is of great significance for improving the national coastal railway artery, promoting the accelerated integration of Jiangsu's coastal areas into the Yangtze River Delta region, and advancing the revitalization of northern Jiangsu and winning the battle against poverty. Party committees and governments at all levels along the route should place the construction of the Yancheng-Nantong Railway in an important position and make every effort to create a favorable environment and conditions for the project; relevant provincial departments should effectively strengthen guidance, enhance coordination and cooperation, and ensure the smooth progress of the project; all participating units and the vast number of engineering construction workers should adhere to quality first and safety foremost, carry forward the spirit of craftsmanship, organize construction meticulously, and ensure that the Yancheng-Nantong Railway project is completed on schedule with high quality.
This year, Jiangsu Province also plans to start construction of three projects: the Southern Jiangsu Riverside Railway, the second phase of the Shanghai-Nantong Railway, and the Shanghai-Suzhou-Huzhou Railway. In addition, it will accelerate the planning and construction of four projects: the Northern Riverside High-Speed Railway, the Nanjing-Huai'an Railway, the Yancheng-Taizhou-Wuxi-Changzhou-Yixing Railway, and the Nantong-Suzhou-Jiaxing Railway.
According to the "13th Five-Year Plan" targets, by 2020 the province's total railway mileage will reach over 4,000 kilometers, including about 3,000 kilometers of rapid railways with speeds of 200 km/h or above, and about 1,600 kilometers of high-speed railways with speeds of 250 km/h or above. A high-speed rail network will be formed connecting Longhai in the north, Shanghai-Nanjing in the south, Beijing-Shanghai in the west, and the river and sea in the east. The coverage rate of rapid railways in node cities at or above the county level will reach about 80%, realizing a radial "1.5-hour transportation circle" between Nanjing and 12 prefecture-level cities and surrounding large and medium-sized cities, allowing more people to board high-speed trains at their doorsteps. The new Jiangsu on track is approaching, and the convenience and comfort of people's travel will be greatly improved.