A news conference is held by the Tian'e county government on Dec 19 to announce the county’s remarkable progress in transportation made in recent years. [Photo/Hechi Daily]

Tian'e county in Hechi, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region has made remarkable progress in its transportation infrastructure in recent years, with the total mileage of roads at and above the village level in the county reaching 1,300 kilometers, according to a news conference held by the county government on Dec 19.

Since the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), the county has invested about 28.81 million yuan ($4.11 million) to build six cement roads, totaling a length of 44.3 km. A total of 338 million yuan were used to harden the 571 roads in the county's villages, with an overall length of 1,147.8 km.

The goal that villages in the county would be connected by cement roads has been realized so far.

To further improve the county's bridge traffic safety, a total of 5.98 million yuan has been invested since 2016 to renovate the 11 deficient bridges in the county.

Construction of the County Third and Fourth bridges are also under way, aiming to ease traffic congestion in Tian'e.

The County Third Bridge is planned to have a length of 366 meters and a width of 21 meters, with an estimated investment of 108 million yuan. Construction of the bridge started in March 2017. It is expected to be completed by the end of December 2020.

The County Fourth Bridge started its construction in August 2019, and is expected to be completed by February 2022. It will have an estimated investment of 190 million, and be 372 meters long and 24.5 meters wide.

Part of the Leye-Baise Expressway in Tian’e county of Hechi. [Photo/Hechi Daily]

To date, Tian'e has a total of 407 km of waterways under its jurisdiction, including 163 km of grade waterways, as well as 16 wharfs.

Construction of wharfs at the upper and lower portions of the Longtan Hydropower Station is being advanced in the county, with a current investment of 24.61 million yuan. The ship lift project for the Longtan Hydropower Station is also being boosted, with a total investment of 150 million yuan so far.

In addition, four expressways are also being built or will be built in the county, including the Tian'e section of the Leye-Baise Expressway, as well as expressways from Tian'e to Nandan, to Pingtang in Guizhou province, and to Bama.

After completion of the expressways, the travel time from Tian'e to Jinchengjiang district of Hechi can be shortened from three hours to one hour, and that from Tian'e to Nanning, capital city of Guangxi, will be reduced to three hours.

The completion of the transportation infrastructure projects will not only improve the living conditions for residents, but also better the county's investment environment, laying a solid foundation for the county's poverty alleviation work and efforts to become better off, according to officials at the news conference.