CHINA: The second metro line in Xuzhou was formally opened for revenue service on November 28, with a ceremony at City Administration Centre station which will be the future interchange between lines 2 and 6.
Attended by Mayor Zhuang Zhaolin, Xuzhou Metro Group Chairman Zhu Mingyong, and Vice-President of China Railway Construction Corp Li Ning, the event also marked the formal start of work on the second phase of Line 3 and the first phase of Line 6.
Noting that Xuzhou had ‘entered the metro era’ with the opening of its 22 km Line 1 in September 2019, the Mayor said the launch of Line 2 and the construction of lines 3 and 6 would take the city into ‘a new stage of interchange and multi-line construction’.
Linking Keyunbei in the north to Xinchengqudong in the southeast, Line 2 is 24·3 km long with 20 stations, including an interchange with the east-west Line 1 at Pengcheng Square. The line runs entirely underground and is equipped with overhead electrification.
It is operated by a fleet of 24 six-car Type B aluminium-bodied trainsets supplied by CRRC Zhuzhou, which are maintained at a depot in Xinchengqudong. Each of the 120 m long trains is rated to carry up to 1 500 passengers.
Services operate from 06.44 to 22.44 each day, with trains running every 7½ min at peak times and every 8 min 45 sec off peak. End-to-end journey time is 38 min, with the trains running at up to 80 km/h.
The first phase of Line 3 is already under construction between Gaozonqunan in the south and Xiadian in the north via the city’s main station. The second phase will add another 6·5 km and six stations, taking the line from Xiadian to Houpantaocun in the northeast and to Mailou in the south. Construction of this phase is expected to take around 50 months.
The first phase of Line 6 will run for 22·9 km from Huangshanlu to Xuzhou East Station, serving 16 stations. Expected to take around 60 months to build this line will also be worked by Type B trainsets, but will be equipped for fully automatic operation.
Meanwhile, planning is underway for an eastern extension of Line 2 from Xinchengqudong to Damiao which would add a further 11·1 km and six stations. Three further metro lines are also planned, along with four suburban feeder routes.
