On the morning of June 28, the groundbreaking ceremony for the main works of the Ground Transportation Center (GTC) of the Changsha Airport Expansion and Reconstruction Project was held at the Changsha Airport Comprehensive Transportation Center site.

The Changsha Airport Expansion and Reconstruction Project is a key project for Hunan to implement the "Three Highs and Four News" strategy, build an inland hub for reform and opening up, promote the development of the urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, and accelerate the construction of the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan metropolitan area. It is of great significance for accelerating the building of the "Changsha four-hour aviation economic circle," opening up new prospects for the rise of the central region, and enhancing Changsha's primacy.

Accelerating project construction

Since the launch of the Changsha Airport Expansion and Reconstruction Project on December 3, 2020, the airport group has fulfilled its responsibilities as a state-owned enterprise, united its efforts, kept its goals in focus, and gone all out to advance project construction. The group's Party Committee has adhered to weekly scheduling, daily inspections, and immediate handling of important matters. Problems have been solved one after another, creating one "speed miracle" after another.

On February 5, the preliminary design and budget estimate were officially approved; it took only 2 months and 5 days from the preliminary design review meeting to official approval. On March 12, the land for advance use was approved; in May, the construction drawings for the comprehensive transportation hub project were completed; on May 30, the land for advance use was cleared and handed over; on June 3, bidding and evaluation for the comprehensive transportation hub construction project were completed.

A new model of integrated transportation

Once completed, the Changsha Airport Comprehensive Transportation Center will integrate four types of ground transportation and four types of rail transit, making it one of the airports in China covering the most modes of transportation. The integrated transportation center is comfortable, safe, convenient, and compact. It achieves the separation of people and vehicles and provides fully indoor spaces throughout the process; passengers need only walk 5 minutes to easily transfer to four types of rail transit: metro, maglev, intercity express, and high-speed rail. With "zero-distance transfer" and "seamless connection," the transfer convenience of the comprehensive transportation hub center reaches the industry's leading level. Information sharing is available in all areas, and all kinds of flight and transportation information are readily available.

According to the plan, the near-term works include rail connections to the Changsha-Ganzhou Railway (Chongqing-Changsha-Xiamen High-Speed Railway), Changsha Metro Line 6, and the Changsha Maglev East Extension Line, with reserved space for Changsha Metro Line 10 and a municipal express line in the long term. By then, Changsha Airport will become a modern three-dimensional comprehensive transportation hub with the most transportation modes in China, opening a new model of integrated air-maglev-rail and ground intermodal transportation in Hunan.

It is reported that the Changsha Airport Expansion and Reconstruction Project is designed to meet the target of 60 million passenger trips and 600,000 tons of cargo and mail throughput by 2030. The main construction content includes airport works, air traffic control works, fuel supply works, and automobile gas station works, among which the total investment in airport works is 42.96732 billion yuan. The Ground Transportation Center (GTC) project has a total construction area of 285,000 square meters and is designed in an integrated way with the terminal building, with boundaryless connection. It includes a comprehensive transportation center of 46,000 square meters (including a staff canteen of 3,000 square meters), a parking building of 160,000 square meters, and passenger overnight accommodation of 79,000 square meters.

The comprehensive transportation hub project is divided into two above-ground floors and three underground floors. Among them, the second above-ground floor is a large passage floor connecting the terminal building, parking building, and passenger overnight accommodation, level with the domestic arrival floor; the first above-ground floor is level with the international arrival floor and is equipped with waiting and pickup points for taxis, long-distance buses, airport buses, public buses, and ride-hailing vehicles; the first underground floor is the rail transfer hall, level with the metro, maglev, and high-speed rail station halls; the second underground floor is the metro platform floor; and the third underground floor is the high-speed rail and maglev platform floor.