Shenzhen will start construction of Metro lines 7, 9, and 11 in September, a meeting of the Shenzhen rail transport and construction office was told in Beijing on Tuesday.
The three Metro lines will cost around 70 billion yuan (US$11 billion). The city will build seven Metro lines and the extension of Metro Line 4 in its third phase of construction.
Because of the huge cost, the three Metro projects will invite China Railway Group and China Railway Construction Corp., the State-owned enterprises under the Central Government, to become involved in the construction work. The projects will be built in a BT (build and transfer) mode, a form of project financing, where the enterprises receive a concession from the government to finance, design, and construct the projects.
Metro Line 5, which is expected to be finished in June, is being built using the BT mode.
The office is also preparing for the construction of Metro lines 6 and 8. The cost of the five Metro lines and the extension of Metro Line 4 is expected to cost 95 billion yuan.
Metro Line 7 will run about 29 kilometers between Tai an in Buxin, Luohu District, to Shenzhen Safari Park in Xili, Nanshan District. With 23 stations planned, it will service the Huaqiangbei business area, the Chegongmiao industrial area and the Taoyuan Village residential area.
Metro Line 9 will run about 18 kilometers from Shenzhen Railway Station to Shangsha, Futian District, with 17 stations. It will run across the Meilin area, relieving transport problems for commuters.
Metro Line 11 will run about 50 kilometers between Futian District and Songgang in Bao an District. The 11 stations will connect with the Guangzhou-Shenzhen light rail in the north and Futian Transport Hub in the south. It will reduce the time for the trip between downtown Shenzhen and the airport to 15 minutes.
The city started preparations for Metro construction in 1992.
Metro Line 1, the first, opened at the end of 2004. The five lines in the second phase of construction will be finished by the end of June, extending the total length to 178 kilometers.
(By Han Ximin)
