CHINA: Two new metro lines were opened in Chongqing on December 28, bringing the city’s network to 164 route-km.
The first phase of Line 5 links Expo Garden Centre and Dalongshan on a 13·6 km alignment with nine stations including three interchanges. The end-to-end journey time is 21 min, and services run between 07.30 and 20.30 at average headways of 8 min. A fleet of eight six-car Type A trainsets is stabled at a depot in Dazhulin.
Line 5 is to be extended at both ends, bringing it to 70·1 km with 33 stations. Of the total route, 48·3 km would be underground, 20·5 km elevated and the rest at grade. The southern extension is due to open in 2019.
Line 10, also known as the Airport Line, runs for 34 km between Wangjiazhuang and Liyuchi, serving 19 stations, including Chongqing North railway station. Two stations at Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport serve terminals 2 and 3, with the station at Terminal 3 also offering interchange with Line 3.
Depots at Wangjiazhuang and Zhujiawan stable a fleet of six-car Type A trainsets, which would be lengthened to seven cars in the future. These have a maximum speed of 120 km/h, allowing an average line speed of 66 km/h.
Construction of Line 10 started in May 2014, and an eight-station southern extension from Liyuchi to Lanhualu is currently being built.
In 2018 two more metro lines are scheduled to open in Chongqing: Line 4 and the Loop Line.
