In Lanzhou in the early morning, the Yellow River passed through the city, and the morning light plated the warm light on this important northwest town. On the railway station square, passengers quickly enter the station through the newly built tunnel; On the North Riverside Road, the traffic flow moves smoothly along the widened road; On the runway of Zhongchuan Airport, the passenger plane is slowly sliding into the sky......

　　During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, Lanzhou's transportation system took the action of strengthening the provincial capital as the general traction, promoted the 1139 work deployment in depth, and launched the city's comprehensive transportation battle with the goal of "external and internal smoothness, three-dimensional diversification, and green wisdom", making the traffic network of this important Silk Road town more and more smooth, and making the travel stories of tens of millions of citizens more and more vivid.

　　Air hub: "Spread your wings and upgrade" of the northwest gateway

　　On November 28, 2024, on the tarmac of Lanzhou Zhongchuan International Airport, the roar of Spring Airlines A320 and Hainan Airlines B787 double models cut through the sky, which was the first test flight verification of dual models, dual field areas, twin towers, and three runways in the northwest region of civil aviation, and finally received high praise of "stability, positiveness, accuracy and goodness". The successful completion of this test flight laid a solid foundation for the commissioning of the third phase of the airport expansion project, and also marked a historic leap in the energy level of Lanzhou's air hub.

　　As a major national transportation project, the total investment of the third phase of the expansion project of Zhongchuan Airport reached 33.438 billion yuan, with two new runways, a 400,000-square-meter T3 terminal and a 270,000-square-meter comprehensive transportation center, and the flight area level was upgraded to 4E level. From the lighting of the flight area in May 2024, to the completion of flight calibration in June, and then to the completion of the main project in July, the project construction pressed the "acceleration button", and on March 20, 2025, the T3 terminal was officially put into operation. After being put into operation, the airport has an annual passenger throughput of 38 million passengers and 300,000 tons of cargo and mail, and international routes can cover major cities in Central Asia and Southeast Asia.

　　"In the past, when I went to Central Asia to talk about business, I had to fly to Beijing first, but now I can fly directly to my doorstep, saving a whole day." Manager Zhang, who does cross-border trade, is deeply touched by this. The widening of the air channel not only facilitates the travel of passengers, but also makes Lanzhou the air fulcrum of the westbound channel of the "Belt and Road", giving wings to the development of the export-oriented economy.

　　Rail Rails: The "Speed Revolution" of the Silk Road Hub

　　"It only takes an hour and a half from Lanzhou to Wuwei." In June 2024, the news of the opening and operation of the Lanwu section of the Lanzhang high-speed railway was swiped in the circle of friends of citizens in the two places. The opening of this high-speed railway is the epitome of the construction of Lanzhou's railway network during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, and now the Lanxin, Lanyu and Lanzhang high-speed railway networks have gradually taken shape, making Lanzhou West Railway Station the largest railway hub in Northwest China.

　　High-speed rail brings not only an increase in speed, but also a reconstruction of the life circle.

　　"Take your children to Xining to see Qinghai Lake on weekends, set off in the morning and arrive at noon, play for a day and rest, and two days on weekends are enough to play." Ms. Li's weekend travel plan is due to the formation of Lanzhou's 2-hour high-speed rail economic circle, which has covered surrounding cities such as Xining and Yinchuan, making the regional linkage appear closer and closer.

　　Freight railways are also frequently reported. In December 2024, the Liugou-Hongshaliang railway special line will be opened to traffic, a 133.44-kilometer-long line, becoming the longest railway line under the jurisdiction of the Lanzhou Railway Bureau, and the first 3,500-ton coal train will be successfully connected to the Lanxin railway network, with an annual capacity of 8 million tons.

　　In addition, the square in front of Lanzhou Railway Station will be upgraded and renovated in August 2024, and the new passenger tunnel will have a net width of 8.4 meters, completely changing the congestion in and out of the station during the previous peak period and making the "Silk Road Station" more warm.

　　In the first half of 2025, the railway project in Gansu Province alone will complete an investment of 10.683 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 14.81%, a record high, and these investments are also being transformed into real transportation capacity and development momentum.

　　Road network extension: the "four directions" of the city's blood

　　"Now from the city to Lanzhou New Area to take the middle passage, it will take more than half an hour!" Mr. Wang, a commuter who lives in Chengguan District, witnessed the changes brought about by the opening of the G1816 Uma Expressway from Lanzhou New Area to Lanzhou (Central Corridor). This control project was completed and opened to traffic on January 1, 2024, and together with the G312 Qingshuiyi to Fujiayao Highway and the S104 Lan'a Highway and other projects, it constitutes the rapid skeleton of Lanzhou's external connectivity.

　　After the completion of the G2201 line of the Ring Expressway, it will realize the "peripheral high-speed around the city", Nanshan Road and the North Ring Road will form the "second ring road" of the city, and the western extension of the North Binhe Road and the connection line from the Chaijiaxia Bridge to the port area bridge will connect the scenery and industries on both sides of the Yellow River. Mr. Chai, a villager in Chaijiatai Village, looked at the new road in front of his house and sighed: "In the past, we had to take a long detour to cross the bridge, but now we can reach the other side in a few minutes, and this road has really been built to our hearts!" This beautiful new road has now become a "check-in place" for citizens to ride and exercise, and the transportation construction and people's livelihood experience have been perfectly integrated.

　　On September 30 this year, three key outreach transportation projects, the Qingzhong section of the G30 Lianhuo Expressway, the S103 Shiqing Highway, and the X320 Yuding Highway, were all completed and officially opened to traffic the day before the National Day. Up to now, 4 of the 9 outreach projects planned to be opened to traffic this year have been opened to traffic.

　　Rural roads are also not lacking. Lanzhou continues to promote the construction of "four good rural roads", and makes the connection between the countryside and the city closer through maintenance, security, dangerous bridge renovation and other projects. Agricultural products can be transported out of the mountains faster, urban people can easily enter the countryside on weekends, and transportation has become an "accelerator" for rural revitalization.

　　Convenient travel: the "internal leap" empowered by wisdom

　　Since the "14th Five-Year Plan", Lanzhou has taken infrastructure upgrading as the starting point, continued to make up for the shortcomings of urban development, improved the supporting facilities system, and focused on improving urban operation efficiency and citizens' travel experience. During this period, the first phase of rail transit line 2 project was built, with an additional track mileage of 9.06 kilometers, a total of 48 planned (dredging) roads were built in the urban area, with a total construction mileage of 34.07 kilometers, and 17.66 kilometers of new roads in various counties; and the construction of public parking facilities was promoted simultaneously, with 35,345 new parking spaces added to effectively alleviate the problem of "parking difficulties".

　　The continuous improvement of rail transit and road network skeleton, the road capacity in urban areas has been significantly improved, injecting strong momentum into urban development. The successive completion of 48 planned (relief) roads has made the dilemma of "two left turns and two kilometers of detour" at the three-way intersection of Wuxingping become history, and also increased the regional traffic efficiency of the East Railway Station Road by 18.4%, making "smooth Lanzhou" from blueprint to reality. The first phase of Line 2 has 9 stations from Dongfanghong Square to Yanbei Road to further weave the urban transportation network; The comprehensive upgrading and renovation project (phase I) of the Lanzhou Baita Mountain section of the Yellow River Basin has opened up the bottleneck of the two-way four-lane road on Beibinhe Road, released the construction space of Qiaobei Square, and activated a new engine for the development of cultural tourism along the Yellow River.

　　While optimizing motor transportation, Lanzhou City simultaneously promoted the construction of a slow travel system and built a new pattern of green travel. Projects such as the Anning Sand Ship Outlet Pedestrian Bridge and the separation and transformation of Jianlan Road have realized the diversion of people and vehicles and reduced horizontal traffic interference. The comprehensive renovation around the Xiguan Cross Hub Station has completed the diversion of ground and underground diversion across the street, effectively alleviating the traffic pressure in the core area; The fitness trails on both sides of the Yellow River are fully connected, guiding citizens to travel green and giving the city health and vitality.

　　Smart empowerment has also become a bright background for infrastructure upgrading. Chengguan Yellow River Bridge and Yantan Yellow River Bridge have installed 5G+ Beidou smart bridge safety operation systems to achieve all-weather monitoring of traffic flow, structural response, and environmental status; The implementation of five smart street lamp pilot projects such as Jiuquan Road has lit up the "nerve endings" of urban management and promoted the infrastructure from "have" to "excellent".

　　Hub empowerment: "full activation" of development momentum

　　The upgrading of transportation will eventually transform into a strong momentum for urban development. Around Lanzhou West Railway Station, the once old area is now lined with shops and office buildings, and the flow of people brought by high-speed rail is being transformed into commercial and economic flow; The expansion of the third phase of Zhongchuan Airport has driven the development of the airport economic zone, and the agglomeration of logistics, commerce and trade industries has accelerated; along rail transit line 2, new business districts continue to emerge, and popularity continues to heat up, injecting new vitality into the urban economy.

　　"The improvement of the transportation hub has made Lanzhou's location advantages more prominent." Pan Jinjun, secretary of the party group and director of the Lanzhou Municipal Transportation Commission, said that transportation construction is supporting population agglomeration, industrial upgrading and open economic development under the action of strengthening the provincial capital. In the fourth quarter of 2024, Lanzhou will focus on the construction of projects such as the Zhongchuan-Heqiao section of the G341 Huangdao-Haiyan Highway and the S01 Heqiao-Haishiwan section, which will further strengthen the ring function of the Lanzhou Economic Circle.

　　From the route network in the air, to the rail and highway on the ground, to the smart travel in the city, Lanzhou transportation during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period has completed a gorgeous transformation from "bottleneck constraints" to "support and leading". Behind the data is the improvement of the travel experience of tens of millions of citizens; The extension of the road network is the expansion of urban development space.

　　Nowadays, the roads are like the blood of the city, the bridges are equipped with "smart brains", the trails connect the ecology and life on both sides of the Yellow River, and the parking spaces carry the daily peace of mind and convenience of citizens. In the final year of the "14th Five-Year Plan", Lanzhou is supporting the humanistic pattern of high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin with a systematic, green and intelligent infrastructure system, making the city business card of "the Yellow River is also very beautiful" shine even brighter. (Reporter He Yixuan Chang Yajin text/photo)