Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in northwest China has
invested a total of 33 billion yuan (US$4.125 billion) over the
past five years in highway construction in both urban and rural
areas.
According to a work conference of the regional transport
department, the money was used to build nearly 90,000 kilometers of
roads across the region during the country's 10th-Five-Year
Plan (2001-2005) for National Economic and Social
Development.
The investment in highway construction during that period was
three times more than the total during a period spanning 45 years
from 1955 to 2000.
So far, a comprehensive road network has been built up in
Xinjiang, consisting of 541 kilometers of expressways, 884
kilometers of first-level highways and over 90,000 kilometers of
roads.
By the end of 2005, Xinjiang had completed construction or
reconstruction projects on seven national highways between its
major cities with a length of 10,000 kilometers.
Meanwhile, Xinjiang used 5.1 billion yuan (US$634.55 million) to
build or rebuild 18,000 kilometers of roads linking 1,500 villages
across the region in a bid to promote rural economic
development.
During the?
11th Five-Year Guidelines?(2006-2010), Xinjiang will exert
further efforts to promote traffic, especially road construction in
rural areas, with the aim of providing economically backward
counties and remote villages access to the outside world.
China is making efforts to accelerate rural reform and
governments at all levels are working hard to improve agricultural
infrastructure, such as road construction, telecommunications and
electricity networks in rural areas.
(Xinhua News Agency, China.org.cn,?March 4, 2006)
