4 nation MONDAY, MARCH 11, 2013 CHINA DAILY PLAN FOR BEIJING’S SOUTHERN AREA SOUND BITES I lived with my grandma during my childhood in an old community in the former Xuanwu district. When I was a kid we used to buy hun- dreds of coal briquettes to heat the room in the winter. In addition to the inconvenience of carry- ing those briquettes in the freezing winter, the rooms were sometimes choked with smoke when we lit the stove. In 2010, the government replaced the traditional coal-burning stoves with electric radiators in the community where grand- ma has spent most of her life. We also receive a JIAO HONGTAO / FOR CHINA DAILY A bullet train passes on the Yongding River Railway Bridge, which goes across Beijing’s Shijingshan, Fengtai and Fangshan districts and Zhuozhou in Hebei province. special price for electricity — half price in the morn- ing. Th is makes the cost of heating in the winter Ambitious roadmap for city’s south even less. Liang Wenchao, 30, a Beijing resident who works in the media industry Three-year plan has turned area structed in the past three years. In addition to the subway, six SOUTH BEIJING into a thriving commercial hub roads, spanning 167 km, are I love camping, especially also being built to connect the First phase of “South Beijing Three-year Plan” (2010-12) in summer and autumn. By ZHENG XIN product of the Fengtai, Daxing southern area with downtown, The “New South Beijing Three-year Plan” (2013-15) [email protected] We usually drive through and Fangshan districts is only including Jingliang Road and Achievements of the Plan for the next three 15 percent of the city’s total. Puhuangyu Road. past three years years the downtown to the After the Beijing govern- The southern part of the Th ree water recycling plants, Olympic Forest Park in ment decided to boost the capital should further attract seven heating centers and fi ve development of the capital’s investment and high-end power transmission and trans- The average annual increase of GDP in the the north of the city with southern sections in 2010, the enterprises, according to the formation stations have also Fengtai, Daxing and Fangshan districts has friends and relatives to increased by: area has turned into a bustling Beijing government. been built. spend the weekend. center of commerce and high- The “New South Beijing Four forest parks have been The new plan’s investment will be no tech and educational institutes. Th ree-year Plan” (2013-15) has set up in the past three years 11.3% 2.1% less than Th e new Riverside Having ended their reliance been approved by municipal in the southern part of the city. higher than the 290 billion yuan ($46.6 city’s average level. Forest Park in Daxing on low-end industries such as authorities, according the Bei- Residents can camp or stroll in billion), according to a spokesper- cement factories and small coal jing Municipal Commission the parks free of charge. son from the Beijing Municipal district has saved us mines, southern Beijing now of Development and Reform, More than 4,000 hectares The local fiscal revenue has increased by: Commission of Development and the trouble of the drive. Reform. has a high concentration of which has pledged to invest at of barren land in southern Aft er just a few minutes’ bio-medical industry bases and least 290 billion yuan ($46.6 Beijing has been turned into 26% 4.2% higher than scientifi c research institutes. billion) in the southern areas. fi elds covered with grass and the capital’s average cycling, we can picnic in figure. Th e southern area spans fi ve Th ese areas will focus on a trees in the city’s aff orestation the grassland or nap in a districts — Fengtai, Fangshan, number of strategic projects project. Daxing and the southern parts with the government continu- A total of 31 major envi- hammock. of Xicheng and Dongcheng ously providing fi nancial, land ronmental protection projects Three Seveneve Five power water heatingea transmission and Many people complain districts, accounting for 20.5 and policy support. have also greatly improved the recycling centerscen transformation that the environment in percent of the city’s area. More Rail transportation, the air and water quality. plants stations than 4.6 million people lived greenbelt along the Yongding the southern part of the in these areas by the end of River and public service facili- Industrial parks More than BEIJING capital is not as good as 2008. ties including schools, health- Several advanced manu- 4,000 hectares According to the municipal care centers, elderly care and facturing bases and civil- Four in the northern part. But of barren land in forest parks government, the average gross museums will be at the top of military integration industry southern Beijing has have been set up in I believe Riverside For- regional product in Fengtai, the project’s agenda over the bases have been set up in the been turned into the southern part of est Park, as well as the Daxing and Fangshan districts next three years, the commis- economic and technological green fields. the city. Residents FENGTAIEEN AII increased by 11.3 percent from sion said. development zones in south- can visit the parks Nanhaizi Park, in Dax- for free. 2010 to 2011. Th e location of a new airport ern Beijing in the past three FANGSHAN ing district, will further DAXING The average gross regional will also play a major role in the years. Eight industrial parks improve the air quality. product in the three districts southern region’s development, have been set up, attracting 52 was 2.1 percent higher than the it said. bio-medical companies and Xia Yin, 26-year-old Beijing Six roads resident who works in Daxing average gross regional product manufacturing enterprises. district. for the entire city. Rapid construction The zones attracted more covering a total distance of 167 kilometers are also being The local fiscal revenues Th e Beijing Subway has seen than 200 projects with a total of built to connect the southern part of Eight industrial parks have in the three districts also unprecedented construction in 120 billion yuan of investment the capital with downtown, including been set up, attracting 52 I just bought a new apart- increased 26 percent, and were the southern area of the capital in the past three years. Jingliang Road and Puhuangyu Road. bio-medical companies and 4.2 percent higher than the in recent years, greatly relieving Low-end industries are manufacturing enterprises. ment in Daxing district. capital’s average fi scal revenue traffi c in the city and providing leaving the city, and small coal The southern districts have Compared with the fi gure. convenience to local residents. mines, cement plants and lime attracted more than 200 apartments in the central However, economic devel- Including three new lines and factories are gradually closing. With three new lines and extensions to existing lines, projects with a total of 120 southern Beijing’s subway system now boasts better carrying opment in the southern parts extensions to existing lines, the Th e southern areas will play billion yuan of investment in part of the city, real estate capacity, covering 118 kilometers, with 90 kilometers the past three years. of the city is still lagging behind subway system in the southern a signifi cant role in dispersing constructed in the past three years. prices here are so much the northern ones, with fewer part of the capital now covers the capital’s exploding popu- high-end industries. Th e gross 118 kilometers, with 90 km con- lation, the government said. Source: Beijing government FENG XIUXIA AND GUILLERMO MUNRO / CHINA DAILY more aff ordable for me. I am optimistic about the development of southern Beijing, es- pecially in the past few New subway lines to get Beijing on fast track years. Th e new streets are spacious and the for- By JIN HAIXING Th e western section of Line the city, according to the city’s plan, only two subway lines, “So many people take the Express, a line connecting Bei- estation is beautiful. [email protected] 14 will be operational in time transport authority. Line 4 and Line 5, serviced the Yizhuang Line every day. Dur- jing’s urban area to the new to service crowds attending the Th e southern area of Beijing capital’s southern suburbs. ing rush hours I sometimes airport in the southern Daxing Th e government has cre- Beijing will open a new 9th China (Beijing) Interna- has long been the poorer side Extending the subway can’t get on the train. The district, will begin this year. ated some forest parks subway line and complete tional Garden Expo, which is of town, with weaker trans- lines has improved transport 7-minute interval between In 2013, Beijing will start the extension of an existing scheduled to begin on May 18, port infrastructure. In 2010, in southern parts of the city. trains on the line is also too a new three-year plan for its in Daxing and Fengtai line in May, the latest move to Lu said on Friday. the municipal government Data from the Beijing Mass long,” he said. southern area. By the end of districts, which have and improve transport infrastruc- One of the line’s seven sta- launched a three-year plan Transit Railway Operation Xiao said he hopes the gov- 2015, the city will have 13 sub- will further improve the ture in the southern part of tions will be named Garden to boost development of the Corp showed that on Friday, ernment will extend the oper- way lines servicing residents the city, municipal authorities Expo Station, and the line will area, including measures to 184,000 trips were taken on ation times of the Yizhuang in the area, with total length air quality.