On The Agenda
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Roads remain the most popular mode of transportation in China, and the country’s road network has witnessed an outstanding growth. From a mere 80,700 kilometers in the early days when the country was founded, its total road length has now surged to over 5.4 million kilometers.
In particular, the length of roads in rural areas reached about 4.6 million kilometers by the end of 2023, accounting for 84.6 percent of the total. With more roads built, travel has no longer been a luxury for residents in isolated and remote areas, greatly boosting their mobility and bringing more job opportunities.
China now also has the world’s busiest operational railway network, stretching over 160,000 kilometers. This represents a phenomenal leap from the 21,000-kilometer-long railways back when the country was founded.
Rapid urbanization has turbocharged the expansion of the comprehensive transportation system in Chinese cities. With over 10,000 kilometers of operational urban railways and 259 certified civil aviation airports, Chinese cities have built robust transport capacities to cater to the growing needs of their urban population.
Logistics has been made more efficient with the fast growth of its multimodal transport, which has propelled China to become the world’s leading express delivery hub for the past 10 years, with per capita express delivery parcels in the country exceeding 90 pieces in 2023.
MDT/Xinhua
