The municipal government of Chongqing has announced that its top priority for investment in 2009 is the construction of two major high-speed railway lines, Chongqing-Guizhou and Chongqing-Kunming; these lines will eventually connect the capital of China’s west with Vietnam, Thailand and other parts of Southeast Asia within hours. The Lanzhou-Chongqing Line, which was started to be built in September, will connect Chongqing with the EuroAsia Railway.
By 2015, according to the Chief Planner of the Municipal Planning Bureau, Mr Zhang Yuan, 11 major lines on the national railway network will connect to Chongqing, making the city the largest hub in China’s west and the fifth largest in the country, following Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Wuhan.
He also said that Jiangbei International Airport will become the fourth largest hub in the country behind Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou with four more runways already planned and approved by the China Aviation Authority.