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China plans to add 200,000 kilometers of highway to its existing
road network of 1.4 million kilometers by the end of 2005, according
to Vice-Minister of Communications Hu Xijie.
Once the projects are completed, China's road length per 100 square
kilometers will reach 16.7 kilometers, Hu said.
"More than half of our investment will be put into the country's
western regions to help the area better develop its opportunities,''
Hu said.
During the 10th Five-Year Plan period (2001-05), 80,000 kilometers
of highway will be constructed in China's western regions, extending
the region's total road length to 650,000 kilometers.
He indicated that the Ministry of Communications plans to invest
700 to 800 billion yuan (US$84.6 - 96.7 billion) in the next 10
years to build road networks in the region.
Hu said his ministry is confident the plan will produce high-quality
construction projects.
"We will strictly abide by the Bidding Law when allocating
our construction projects. Nobody can take advantage of their positions
to secure illicit gains for companies and individuals,'' Hu said
in the news briefing.
"Road experts, instead of local officials, will dictate the
authorization process of bidding, and officials can only serve as
supervisors to those projects,'' Hu said.
Special inspections teams, deployed by the ministry, will also oversee
some of the larger projects to guarantee fair play.
Hu admitted that corruption was uncovered involving past road construction
projects, but said those cases were "extremely minor.''
Zhang Chunxian, another vice-minister of the ministry who attended
the conference, said the ministry would open its water transportation
market as of May 1.
"The opening process will be carried out step by step, though
the country's pending WTO entry may push the steps to happen faster,''
Zhang said.
He indicated that China will open transports along all major rivers,
including the Yangtze and Yellow rivers, in the near future if China
is granted a smooth entry into the WTO.
Zhang said his ministry has decided to build Shanghai into a major
deep-water port throughout the next five years, with the hope that
it develops into an international shipping center.
In addition to Shanghai, Dalian, Tianjin, Qingdao and Shenzhen will
also undergo renovations or upgrades to become modern deep-water
ports by 2005.
Zhang said China welcomes overseas companies to join the bidding
process of harbor construction.
"All the harbors will be open to overseas investors under China's
related investment regulations,'' Zhang said.
(China Daily 03/30)
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