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From:uphai.com
By: 2008-06-16 Today:
Shanghai has an extensive public transportation system, largely based on buses, and a rapidly expanding metro system. For a city of Shanghai's size, road traffic is still fairly smooth and convenient but getting more congested as the number of cars increases rapidly.
The Shanghai Metro rapid-transit system and elevated light rail has eight lines (numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 9) at present. According to the development schedule of the municipal government, by the year 2010, another 4 lines (numbers 7, 10, 11 and 12) will be built. It is one of the fastest-growing systems in the world - the first line opened in just 1995. Shanghai also has the world's most extensive bus system with nearly one thousand bus lines. Bus and metro fares run from ¥3 to ¥9 depending on distance.
Taxis in Shanghai are plentiful and market competition has driven taxi fare down to affordable prices for the average resident (¥11 (¥14 after 11pm) or a little over one US dollar for 3 km). Before the 1990s, bicycling was the most ubiquitous form of transportation in Shanghai, but the city has since banned bicycles on many of the city's main roads to ease congestion. However, many streets have bicycle lanes and intersections are monitored by "Traffic Assistants" who help provide for safe crossing. Further, most motorists in China were raised riding bikes and so are fairly careful of them. Further, the city government has pledged to add 180 km of cycling lanes over the next few years. With rising disposable incomes, private car ownership in Shanghai has also been rapidly increasing in recent years. The number of cars is limited, however, by the number of available number plates available at public auction.
In cooperation with the Shanghai municipality and the Shanghai Maglev Transportation Development Co. (SMT), German Transrapid constructed the first commercial Maglev railway in the world in 2002, from Shanghai's Longyang Road subway station in Pudong to Pudong International Airport. Commercial operation started in 2003. The 30 km trip takes 7 minutes and 21 seconds and reaches a maximum speed of 431 km/h (267.8 mph).
Two railways intersect in Shanghai: Jinghu Railway (Beijing-Shanghai) Railway passing through Nanjing, and Shanghai-Hangzhou Railway (沪杭线 Hu Hang Line). Shanghai is served by two main railway stations, Shanghai Railway Station and Shanghai South Railway Station. Express service to Beijing through Z-series trains is fairly convenient. A Maglev train route to Hangzhou (Shanghai-Hangzhou Maglev Train) might begin construction in 2007. A high-speed railroad to Beijing is also in the works.
More than six national expressways (prefixed with "G") from Beijing and from the region around Shanghai connect to the city. Shanghai itself has six toll-free elevated expressways (skyways) in the urban core and 18 municipal expressways (prefixed with "A"). There are ambitious plans to build expressways connecting Shanghai's Chongming Island with the urban core.
Shanghai has two airports: Hongqiao International and Pudong International, the latter of which has the third highest traffic in China, following Beijing Capital International Airport and Hong Kong International Airport. Pudong International handles more international traffic than Beijing Capital however, with over 17.15 million international passengers handled in 2006 compared to the latter's 12.6 million passengers. Hongqiao mainly serves domestic routes, with a few city-to-city flights to Tokyo's Haneda Airport and Seoul's city airport.
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