In the early days of reform and opening up, the construction of highways in mainland China was almost blank.
However, as of now, the total mileage of highways in China has reached 160,000 kilometers, ranking first in the world.
From the realization of "nothing" to "the world's first", the "hometown" of China's expressway story starts with the Shanghai-Jiamen Expressway in Shanghai.
The first highway in mainland China
On October 31, 1988, after four years, the Shanghai-Jiamen Expressway was completed and opened to traffic, marking the birth of the first expressway in mainland China.
As a witness to the construction of the Hujia Expressway, Zhang Kuihong, the assistant commander and deputy chief engineer of the Hujia Expressway Engineering Construction Command at the time, admitted in an interview frankly that in the late 1970s, expressways were still a very new concept in China. , Whether or not to build, how to build at that time also triggered a fierce collision of ideas in the industry.
After a series of rigorous demonstrations, the Shanghai Municipal Government finally decided to implement it as an experimental expressway.
On December 21, 1984, the first Shanghai-Jiamen Expressway designed and constructed in accordance with expressway standards in Mainland China broke ground in the Jiading section of Shanghai’s entrance to the city, and thus took the "first step" in the exploration and construction of China's expressways.
Since the Shanghai-Jiamen Expressway was completed and opened to traffic in 1988, expressways in mainland China have developed rapidly.
In 2012, China's highway mileage reached 96,000 kilometers, surpassing the United States for the first time and ranking first in the world.
Up to now, the total mileage of highways open to traffic across the country has reached 160,000 kilometers, and China continues to hold its position as the world's number one.
Zhang Kuihong said that the opening of the Shanghai-Jiamen Expressway has provided a good template for the construction of expressways in other cities in China, and said that he was very lucky to be able to participate in the construction of this expressway at that time, which also witnessed the urban development of Shanghai.
Screenshot from: Zhongxin Video
Turn exhibits into commodities: to create a never-closing trading service platform
Over the past few decades, Shanghai's traffic highways have developed rapidly.
Statistics show that the total mileage of highways in the city has increased from 1978 kilometers in the initial stage of reform and opening up to 12916.6 kilometers in 2020. Among them, the highway has broken through from "zero" to 844.7 kilometers.
The continuous extension and development of Shanghai expressways have also created good opportunities for local economic development.
Not far from the Shanghai-Jiamen Expressway, the Hongqiao Import Commodity Exhibition and Trading Center is one of the "beneficiaries."
The center is located in the Hongqiao transportation hub and can reach the surrounding main urban areas within 2 hours.
As an important platform for undertaking and amplifying the spillover effects of the Shanghai International Import Expo, the center is committed to creating a never-closing trading service platform through the "6 days + 365 days" perennial display.
After two years of construction, the center has gathered more than 2,000 brands and more than 20,000 products from more than 70 countries (regions), of which 70% of the products come from exhibitors at the CIIE.
According to the staff of the Hongqiao Import Commodity Exhibition and Trading Center, most of these exhibitors are overseas small and medium-sized enterprises that entered China for the first time through the CIIE.
The center builds a platform for these companies’ imported products to directly face the Chinese market, thereby promoting the conversion of CIIE exhibits into commodities and better realizing the connection between domestic and foreign supply and demand.
Data map: The 3rd CIIE will be held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai) from November 5 to November 10, 2020.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Hou Yu
Connecting the past and the future: "A century-old shop" creates multiple "China firsts"
Continuing along the Shanghai Expressway, the reporter came to the new Lingang area with a modern industrial atmosphere and rich history.
This is an important area connecting Shanghai's past and future development.
In the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, a hundred wastes were waiting for prosperity.
At that time, a company located in Shanghai took on the important task of the hometown of power in China, and created a number of "China firsts": China's first thermal power generation unit, the first dual water internal cooling generator, and the first The 10,000-ton hydraulic press and the first nuclear power unit were born here one after another.
The name of this company is Shanghai Electric, and its predecessor can be traced back to Shanghai Dalong Machinery Factory in 1902.
According to the staff of Shanghai Electric, as a leading brand in China’s industry, Shanghai Electric has seized opportunities in the wave of reform and opening up. Through joint ventures, cooperation and technology introduction, it has strived to build a high-end equipment manufacturing brand, achieving a leap in equipment level and rapid corporate growth. development of.
In recent years, the company has made many innovations: China’s first large-scale marine crankshaft, the largest domestic single-machine seawater desalination equipment, the world’s largest capacity steam turbine generator... With a century-old history, today, this "100-year-old shop" It is not only a large-scale comprehensive high-end equipment manufacturing enterprise in China, but also an internationally renowned brand that ranks among the world's forefront, continuously providing power to China and the world.
Data map: Shanghai Oriental Pearl TV Tower.
Image source: Visual China
From the "River Era" to the "Ocean Era": the world's largest single automated terminal
As the sun sets westward, along the high-speed Donghai Bridge that spans 32 kilometers, you see a sparkling sea.
SIPG Yangshan Deepwater Port is located on this secluded seaside.
More than 20 years ago, Yangshan was just a small island scattered on the East China Sea.
In February 2002, the State Council formally approved the construction of the first phase of the Yangshan Deepwater Port Area.
On June 26 of the same year, the first pile was laid for the first phase of the project and construction officially started.
Nowadays, the first to fourth phases of Yangshan have been completed. Among them, the fourth phase of the automated terminal is located on the westernmost side of the entire Yangshan deep-water port. After more than 3 years of construction, the largest single unit in the world has been "built" from the deep sea. Fully automated terminal.
Sun Jinyu, deputy general manager of Shangdong Branch of SIPG, introduced that in Yangshan Phase IV, more than half of the containers were transported to all directions through the Donghai Bridge by vehicles.
As the world's largest automated container terminal, since the opening of the port in 2017, the fourth phase of Yangshan has continued to expand and release its production capacity.
Data shows that in 2019, the Yangshan Port Area completed a container throughput of 19.808 million TEUs; in 2020, the Yangshan Port Area exceeded 20 million TEUs for the first time... It played an important role in turning the national strategy of Shanghai International Shipping Center from a blueprint to a vivid practice. The "main force" and "pioneering" role.
On the edge of the Yangshan deep-water port area, huge cranes are busy transporting large and small containers, and unmanned electric trucks shuttle among the containers in an orderly manner.
From a distance, this pier reveals its busyness in quietness. Against the backdrop of the sunset, it is like a majestic and powerful giant, pushing Shanghai Port from the "River Era" to the "Ocean Era".
Author: Liu Liang Zhou Zhuo Aokangyuzhan