Weng'an-Kaiyang Expressway opens to traffic

A ceremony for the opening of the Weng'an-Kaiyang Expressway is held on the Kaizhouhu Bridge on Dec 30. [Photo/Kaiyang Release]

The newly-built Weng'an-Kaiyang Expressway – located in Southwest China's Guizhou province – officially opened to traffic on Dec 31, following a construction period of three years and nine months.

The 48.5-kilometer-long expressway connects the Yinchuan-Baise Expressway in Weng'an county with the Lanzhou-Haikou Expressway in Kaiyang county. 

It has a design speed of 100 kilometers per hour and accommodates four lanes.

The completed structure has 61 bridges, five tunnels, one service area and five toll stations – at a total cost of 7.8 billion yuan ($1.17 billion).

This section of the new Weng'an-Kaiyang Expressway is still empty of traffic for now. [Photo/Kaiyang Release]

The operation of the expressway has reportedly shortened the driving distance between Kaiyang and Weng'an to 48.52 kilometers from 110.8 km previously, while the travel time has been cut to just 46 minutes from 1 hour and 41 minutes.

The project is believed to be of great significance to the improvement of the expressway network in Guizhou province, as well as to the construction of the expressway loop for the economic zone in central Guizhou province.

The expressway is also expected to boost the regional economy, support new-model industrialization and urbanization – and contribute to the construction of a world-class phosphorus and phosphorus chemicals production hub in central Guizhou.

A magnificent view of the Kaizhouhu Bridge, part of the new Weng'an-Kaiyang Expressway. [Photo/Kaiyang Release]