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| Highways extend in all directions |
The
Chinese government has always taken the construction of highways as one of the
important components of speeding up the construction of infrastructure
facilities. In the three years from 1998 to 2000, its investment in this respect
was more than 200 billion yuan each year. In 2001, the total investment in
infrastructure construction in transportation was over 260 billion yuan, and
32,000 km of highways were built, including 3,017 km of expressways. By the end
of 2001, the length of highways open to traffic throughout the country reached
1,698,000 km, including 19,000 km of expressways. Meanwhile, the state has
speeded up the construction of highways in poverty-stricken areas, and great
improvements have been made in the highways reaching central and western China.
The nation's highway density has reached 17.7 km per 100 sq
km.