Urban rail transit in China

Urban rail transit in China encompasses a broad range of urban and suburban electric passenger rail mass transit systems including subway, light rail, tram and maglev. Some classifications also include non-rail bus rapid transport. China has the world's longest urban rail transit system with more than of urban rail nationwide in 2020.

As of 2020, China has put 233 urban rail transit lines into operation in 44 cities. By 2019, China had more than 6,100 km of subway or metro lines. As of 2022, 9 of the 10 largest metro systems in the world, with the exception of the Moscow Metro, are in China. Over half of the world's 200 metro systems in the world are in China. Although the Shanghai Metro only started operating in 1993, it is now the world's longest subway system.Archived a
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Half of the top ten busiest metro systems in the world are in China. By early-2020, Mainland China had opened 41 metro systems with 185 metro lines.

History

Several Chinese cities had urban electric tramways in the early 20th century, which were dismantled in the 1950s–1970s. Nanjing had from 1907 to 1958. The first subway in China was built in Beijing in 1969 (but it was only handed to civilian control in 1981 and trial operations ended later in the same year; before which credentials were required). The Tianjin Metro followed in 1984. The MTR Corporation Limited from across the border in Hong Kong has investment, consulting and management stakes in the rapid transit systems of several mainland Chinese cities (having completed their first section of subway and entered into revenue operation in 1979 in New Kowloon, at the time when the territory was under British rule).

The rapid growth of the Chinese economy since the 1980s has created a huge surge in demand for urban transport. This prompted cities across China to pursue and draft proposals for subway networks, with Shanghai and Guangzhou opening their first sections of subway in the 1990s, inspiring more cities to propose subway networks. In 1995, the Central Government, alarmed by the high cost and financial debt from these ambitious subway plans, put out a "notice on the suspension of approval of urban underground rapid rail transit projects" barring new subway systems outside of Beijing, Tianjin, Guangzhou and Shanghai from being built. At the time Nanjing, Wuhan, Chongqing, Dalian and Shenzhen had advanced proposals waiting to be approved. Wuhan, Chongqing, Dalian managed to circumvent the moratorium on subway construction by constructing and opening lower cost elevated lines, light metros, and monorails in the early 2000s. Rapid urbanization of China lead to severe congestion and pollution in urban areas leading to the suspension being lifted. Initially, light metro lines using small profile and shorter rolling stock were constructed to reduce costs. It was assumed that as ridership grows the line will operate trains at a low headway to increase capacity. This design paradigm was known in China as "small groups, high density" operation. However, after a few years operating, many of these lines such as Guangzhou Metro Line 3, Line 6, Shanghai Metro Line 6, and Line 8 were severely overcapacity. Guangzhou Metro Line 3 was able to reconfigure from 3-car trains into 6-car trains to slightly relieve overcapacity. This led many cities such as Beijing, Guangzhou, Wuhan and Chengdu to use higher capacity designs on newer lines.

Since the mid-2000s, the growth of rapid transit systems in Chinese cities has rapidly accelerated, with most of the world's new subway mileage in the past decade opening in China. From 2009 to 2015, China built 87 mass transit rail lines, totaling , in 25 cities at the cost of ¥988.6 billion. In 2016, the Chinese government lowered the minimum population criteria for a city to start planning a metro system from 3 million to 1.5 million residents. As part of its 13th Five Year Plan, the Chinese government published a transport whitepaper titled "Development of China's Transport". The plan envisions a more sustainable transport system with priority focused on high-capacity public transit particularly urban rail transit and bus rapid transit. All cities with over 3 million residents will start or continue to develop urban rail networks. Regional rail networks will be constructed internally connect and integrate urban agglomerations such as the Jingjinji, Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta areas. In 2017, some 43 smaller third-tier cities in China have received approval to develop subway lines.

Urban rapid transit systems

Statistics

Urban rapid transit systems

Urban rapid transit lines

;Legend:
– Lines in operation
– Lines under testing

Commencement dates of lines and extensions

;Legend:
– Lines / extensions in operation.

– Lines / extensions under testing.

Currently operational

Anhui

Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei

Chongqing-Sichuan

Fujian

Gansu

Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau

Guangxi

Guizhou

Heilongjiang

Henan

Hubei

Hunan

Inner Mongolia

Jiangxi

Jilin

Liaoning

Shaanxi

Shandong

Shanghai-Jiangsu-Zhejiang

Shanxi

Xinjiang

Yunnan

Under construction

;Metro
* Taizhou Metro

;Maglev
* Qingyuan Maglev
* Fenghuang Maglev

;Monorail

* Bengbu Rail Transit
* Guilin Rail Transit
* Liuzhou Rail Transit
* Shantou Metro

Construction suspended

* Baotou Metro
* Hengyang Metro

Proposed

* Anqing Metro
*
* Chengde Metro
* Chenzhou Metro
* Chifeng Metro
*
* Datong Metro
*
*
* Fuxin Metro
* Fuyang Metro
*
* Guangyuan Metro
*
*
*
*
*
* Huzhou Metro
*
*
* (excluding Line 11 of Shanghai Metro and under construction Line S1 of Suzhou Metro which both run into Kunshan)
* Liaocheng Metro
*
*
* Longyan Metro
* Luzhou Metro
* Ma'anshan Metro
*
* Nanchong Metro
* Nanyang Metro
* Neijiang Metro
*
*
* Quzhou Metro
* Rizhao Metro
* Sanya Metro
* Shangrao Metro
* Shiyan Metro
* Suqian Metro
* Tangshan Metro
*
*
*
* Weinan Metro
* Wuzhou Metro
* Xiangyang Metro
* Xingtai Metro
* Xining Metro
* Xuancheng Metro
* Yancheng Metro
*
*
* Yichang Metro
* Yinchuan Metro
* Yulin Metro
* Zhangjiagang Metro
* Zhangzhou Metro
* Zhanjiang Metro
*
* Zhongshan Metro
* Zhuzhou Metro
* Zibo Metro
*

Notes

Regional, suburban, & commuter rail

Tram and light rail systems

;Legend:
- In operation.

- Under test run.

- Out of service

See also

* Rapid transit in Taiwan
* Trams in China
* Autonomous Rail Rapid Transit in China
*List of tram and light rail transit systems
*List of town tramway systems in Asia
* List of rapid transit systems
*List of trolleybus systems

Notes

References

External links

China Urban Mass Transit NetworkUrban Mass Transit Industry NetUrban Mass Transportation Researchchinametro.orgChina Bus Rapid Transit Network2016 China Urban Rail Transit Network

{{Transport in China