Briefing 22 - Crossing Provincial Borders by Rail and Metro

Increasingly, China's metro networks are breaking jurisdictional boundaries by connecting not just urban districts together, but also different provinces.

Ladies and gentlemen, dear passengers,

The city of Basel is quite unique in that it allows you to cross the border by both rail and tram! These are international borders, and Switzerland comparatively more 'compact', so it's easier to just cross the border into, for example, Germany or France. China is, in comparison, ginormous, so you'll need quite a walk to reach an international border checkpoint. More likely, you'll be crossing city or provincial borders inside the People's Republic.

For a long time, this was possible by car, plane, or national rail services, but less so with metros (and virtually not possible with trams). Eastern China's Shanghai Metro Line 11 has its northwestern terminus, Huaqiao, in nearby Jiangsu province, but as of late, the big headliner out from there is not so much where the terminus is on Shanghai Line 11, but that it connects at that station to Suzhou Line 11, so you can actually head directly into Suzhou!

Northern China will be getting two of these lines, all of which involve Beijing. Two lines that are being actively built include Beijing-Xiongan, as well as a rather interesting line that dips into Yanjiao in nearby Hebei whilst finishing in either Central Beijing or the far eastern district of Pinggu in the capital. Today, we'll be taking a look at the latter one — it's got quite a story...

Also, please note, due to editorial and technical reasons, we will in future close coverage on Friday evening China time. Previously, we waited for developments coming out of China until those close of business on Monday (China time), but this meant that you were getting this newsletter with a 24-48 hour delay.

Enjoy the journey!

David Feng
27 May 2024 (Date of last news update)