Arial view of Nansha district [Photo/Guangzhou Daily]

Nansha Station, a comprehensive transportation hub being built in Guangzhou, may embrace at least three metro lines in its transit network, including the much-anticipated Line 18 to be operational this year, together with several high-speed railways and intercity train routes.

According to a proposal published by local authorities last week for further developing the station's train service, metro Lines 18, 15 and 38 are expected to converge in the station and the construction of connecting facilities will take about two years.

Line 18 will be the first metro to start service in the Nansha Station, as its Wanqingsha（万顷沙）– Xiancun（冼村）section is set to open this year. The section's track building was completed on Tuesday (April 20). Once put into service, the express line, running north-south across Guangzhou, will be the fastest metro in Chinawith a maximum designed speed of 160 kilometers per hour. It will shorten the travel time between Nansha and Tianhe districts to 30 minutes, which will help attract more people to settle and work in Nansha.

The route map of Line 18 [Photo/ycwb]

Details of Line 38 were disclosed for the first time. The metro is designed to start at Lianxi Dadao（莲溪大道）and end at Shiliuchong（十六涌）—a station at the southern extension of Line 18 which will lead to Zhongshan and Zhuhai cities. Line 38 will meet Line 4 at Feishajiao（飞沙角）and Tangkeng（塘坑）stations and will connect to Line 15 through another transfer station besides the Nansha Station.

According to the city authorities, Line 38 is part of a long-term development program of Guangzhou's urban rail transit system and the design may be subject to change.

Line 15 is positioned to loop around the suburban district, with Hengli（横沥）and Jiaomen（蕉门）established as interchange stations to Line 18 and Line 4, respectively. Construction of the circle line still requires approval from national departments.

Planned metro layouts of Nansha district [Photo/Guangzhou Daily]

The three metro lines will join lines 4, 26, 31, 32 and 33 to offer greater travel convenience across the whole Nansha district.

Nansha Station is an important railway hub to promote connectivity among cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. It will help create a "one-hour living circle" for the region's residents.

Planned railway layouts of Nansha district [Photo/Guangzhou Daily]

The station will operate high-speed railways for passengers between Shenzhen and Jiangmen, Guangzhou and Zhuhai, as well as intercity railways to Humen in Dongguan, Shunde in Foshan, Zhongshan and Zhaoqing. High-speed trains fromShenzhen to Ganzhou in Jiangxi province and Nanning in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region will also stop at the station.

Nansha Station is poised to be a key node of the Nansha Port Railway, the first special freight line to serve the Nansha Free Trade Zone. Rail construction has commenced in early March.

Author: Pauline Tai, Silk Road Post

Editor: Sophia