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GUANGZHOU: A HUGE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
FOR A CITY WITH 5 MILLION PASSENGERS DAILY


The massive transport system of Guangzhou: 17,000 taxis, eight subway lines with 144 stations
(airport included), 8,000 bus, superfast boats, 40 million passengers in the flights ...


It is easy to imagine how a city with the size of Guangzhou, 13 million inhabitants and more than 8 million visitors (local and foreign), have not indifferent traffic problems. In addition, in the last 5 years the cars owned by residents increased by 22 percent, there were 310.000 new cars registered only in 2010. Fortunately, the city can count on an equally massive transport system: from the Airport (more than 40 million passengers a year) to the Metro (4 million passengers a day), from the Trains (now in booming phase thanks to 'high speed lines') to the Bus (520 lines and more than 8000 buses), by Ferries (75 minutes to Hong Kong by fast boats) to Taxis (17.000 cubs of 87 companies).


Taxi: 17,000 cubs of 87 different companies

Foreign visitors often prefer to always use a taxi, because they fear getting into trouble using other means of transport. Indeed, even the subway is pretty easy to use and, depending on destination, saves you time. In any case Guangzhou still has an impressive fleet of taxis to provide a high level of comfort. In Canton there are over 17000 taxis belonging to 87 different companies. The most reliable taxis (those of major companies) are in red, blue, yellow, gold and green. The taxi fares: 7 cny for the first 2.3 kilometers (1.4 miles); 2.6 cny for succeeding kilometers; 1 cny for the fuel surcharge. The fares can change or can be different because many operators. If there are problems, you can call up the taxi hot line. 96900. We advise you to keep the receipt of the taxi, because it allows to identify the taxi in which you have traveled. Other numbers for call taxis: 96122, 020-86231800.


Baiyun Airport: 128 flights to domestic and international destinations

Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport is open in 2004, replacing the previous (72 year old) airport. The new airport is located 28 km north of the city and is almost 6 times bigger than its predecessor. The connections with the city are very well organized: in addition to the subway, there are five excellent Airport airport express bus lines, ten airport shuttle bus, and several intercity buses between Guangzhou and nearby cities. Baiyun Airport, one of three busiest airports in China and the 19th in the world in terms of passengers (more than 40 million per year), is the main hub for China Southern Airlines and is an important reference point for Shenzhen Airlines. When the works to the structure of the airport will be completed, Baiyun Airport will be able to handle 75 million passengers and more than 2.5 million tonnes of cargo a year. From Guangzhou, there are regular flights to Los Angeles, Paris, Amsterdam, Melbourne, Sydney, Tokyo, Seoul and Lagos. Many destinations are linked in Asia, including Vietnam, Laos, Burma, India, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia


Trains: very comfortable service by high speed lines

Guangzhou has six railway stations. The high-speed trains can be taken especially in the Guangzhou Railway Station to go in the main cities of China. In the Guangzhou East Railway Station you can take some high speed trains, especially to go to Zhuhai, Shenzhen, Dongguan. In this station you can also take a train to Hong Kong, which travel a distance of 182 km in about two hours. Trains to Hong Kong, though not (yet) at high speed, they are comfortable and not uncommon. Both stations are well served by the meter and are easy to reach from the airport. Guangzhou North Railway Station is located in Huadu District, in this station mainly performs the bullet trains between Guangzhou and Wuhan.


Metro: eight subway lines with 144 stations (airport included)

In Guangzhou are currently in operation eight subway lines (236 km and 144 stations) that connect many landmarks of the city (even Bayun Airport is accessible by subway). Actually the Guangzhou Metro has an average passenger capacity of about 4,000,000 passengers per day. The service start every day at 6:00 and close at midnight. From 2010 is operative also Guanfo, the first intercity metro line in China, that connects Guangzhou and the nearby city of Foshan. In the coming years, the Guangzhou Metro will expand further. Between 2011 and 2020 will be built two new lines (number 6 and 8) and will be made various extensions of existing lines (also Guangfo Line) until to reach a total length of 600 km in 2020.


Bus: cheap way to move (by 8000 bus and 520 lines)

Using the bus is the cheapest way to move around (just 2 yuan). In Guangzhou there are about 520 bus lines and more than 8000 buses. Around 80% of the buses are provided with air conditioning. The urban buses abitually work from 06:00 to 22:00. Most information at bus stops is written primarily in Chinese (but sometimes are in pinyin or English). If you get stuck, remember that the bus stops close to the subway have clearly in evidence the logo of Guangzhou Metro on the sign. In this case, viewing this logo come down and take the Metro, where it is much easier to travel. However, the system bus in Guangzhou can rely on a highly developed system of highways that connect it with many outside destinations. In the city there are now 20 stations for long distance bus offering many possibilities to go in neighboring cities and counties, within and outside Guangdong Province (like Provincial Bus Station and Fangcun Bus Station).


Bus Rapid Transit: less time, tripling capacity, lowered pollution

Guangzhou in 2010 opened the first 22.5 km of BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) along Zhongshan Avenue, one of the busiest and congested streets of the city. The important work, executed by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, has brought results better than all the BRT made ??in Asia. The capacity is tripled, now Guangzhou buses can carry up to 805.000 people. The travel times were reduced by 30% for buses and 20% for cars. The degree of satisfaction of those who use public transport has risen from 29 to 65%. There are also good news about pollution, CO2 emissions were reduced by 86.000 tonnes per year.


Ferries and fast Boats: only 75 minutes to reach Hon Kong

The Ferry is the cheapest way to cross the Pearl River (1 y). About 30 years ago the crossing of the river by ferry was very popular and thousands of people were using this transport. Today the people that use it are much reduced, both for the construction of numerous bridges, and for the presence of other transport systems. However we must not forget that Guangzhou is one of the most important port cities in China and that is located on the Pearl River which is also a great waterway of China (second only to the Yangtze River). So in some ports of Guangzhou it is provided the passenger transport service to many cities. For example, in Panyu Lianhuashan Port you can find fast boats that make daily service to Hong Kong. Huangpu Port provides ship travel to Xiuying Port and Haikou. The New Nansha Port (rather far from downtown) has in operation 4 lines having as destination Hong Kong, Macau and the International Airport of Hong Kong. The trip to Hong Kong requires only 75 minutes.

2011-11-25