19.04.2017
Road infrastructure plays important role in the development of any country, therefore, road construction is always given Special attention... Building a road is not so easy, because it in some way resembles a "puff cake", consisting of various layers of building materials. According to their structure and paving technologies, cement-concrete (hard) and asphalt-concrete (non-rigid) roads are distinguished.
Cement concrete road
The service life of this road reaches 25 years. It is laid by laying out concrete slabs made at the factory.
Asphalt concrete
These roads have been in operation for up to 10 years. The materials used in construction significantly affect the durability of each layer that makes up the road: soil at the base, then sand, then a layer of rubble and the final layer of asphalt. If the cost of crushed granite, sand and other materials corresponds to the quality, then it is better not to skimp in this matter, and the service life will exceed all expectations.
Europe
The best road paving technologies in Europe are, perhaps, in Germany and Finland. The thickness of all layers of German roads can be up to two meters. When laying them, German specialists are in no hurry, and step by step they check all materials for quality. Before laying the final layer, they cover the road with a protective sheet from the sun and rain, which helps the lower layers to harden well. Only then is asphalt or heavy-duty concrete laid. In the event of holes, they change the whole section of the road, and do not patch it up.
Finnish specialists use the same methods as in Germany. The only difference is that in some parts of the country the soil is unstable, so they add special admixtures that stabilize the soil base.
China
China is on a par with Europe. However, the Chinese road paving differs not only in quality, but also in speed - 750 m / h. The road construction technology consists in covering the main roadbed, consisting of concrete slabs, with asphalt. This method achieves a service life of 25 years.
Russia
Today in Russia, in 98% of cases, the asphalt-concrete method of laying is used. Only in comparison with other countries - the construction technology in most cases has remained the same as in the last century. In less than 20% of cases, new materials (geogrids and geotextiles) are used during construction. They often try to save on materials, so roads have to be patched up in a couple of years, after laying.
If you are engaged in construction in the Moscow region, and want to buy crushed stone with delivery of the best quality, the Yamskoye Pole company is what you need! We guarantee quality and long service life of your roads!
China is developing at an unprecedented pace in history. Statistics say that over the past two years, more concrete has been produced in the PRC than in the United States in the entire twentieth century. And today we will tell you about 7 items who China can teach Russia, America and the rest of the world.
Active construction
Of course, the huge amount of concrete produced in China speaks to the incredible volume of construction in this country. Everything is under construction - blocks of tall skyscrapers, high-rise and low-rise residential areas covering the horizon, government, cultural, educational institutions, industrial facilities.
China is one of the few in modern world countries that are building entire cities. New construction is underway throughout the People's Republic of China. settlements... At the same time, they are often built in accordance with the state plan near recently discovered mineral deposits or in promising industrial areas.
Now in China there are already 220 million-plus cities and 23 settlements, where more than 5 million people live. And Beijing and Shanghai boast over 10 million residents.
At the same time, more and more ordinary people in China can afford their own apartment. It is believed that every family with a stable income can buy it on credit, because real estate prices are low, and it is relatively easy to get a loan. This is largely responsible for the unprecedented pace of construction in the PRC.
Development of land transport infrastructure
The development of transport infrastructure should also be mentioned as a separate item from construction in general. Network construction highways in China is underway at a record pace. For example, in 2013, the total length of the road network in the PRC was 4.1 million kilometers, of which 104.5 thousand kilometers were high-speed highways. A year later, the last figure was already 111.9 thousand kilometers, a striking increase. And the process does not stop even for a day!
The construction plan implies that in the coming years, a network of high-speed highways will connect all cities with a population of over 200 thousand people in all regions of the state.
It should be recalled that the development of the road network is not only the laying of asphalt on flat terrain, it is also the construction of bridges, overpasses, multi-level junctions, as well as tunnels through mountains and water obstacles. For example, now in the PRC there are more than 300 thousand bridges, of which at least a thousand are one kilometer or more long.
PRC is also seeking to build. Over the past twenty-five years, the authorities have been investing huge resources in the construction of railway lines, of which a significant part is high-speed.
Railways are blood arteries in the body of any major state. Through them there is a flow of goods and resources, with their help most of the inhabitants move within the country.
As of 2014, the total length of all railway lines in the PRC was 120 thousand kilometers, of which more than 16 thousand were high-speed. Statistics say that an average of 40 new train routes are opening in China every week.
Moreover, China launched a program in 2011, according to which it plans to entangle the whole of Southeast Asia with a network of its own railways.
Development of air transport infrastructure
China pays no less attention to the development of air transport and infrastructure for air transportation. This is quite logical, given the large size of the country and the huge number of inhabitants in it. For example, this was understood in the Soviet Union, where civil aviation received huge state subsidies, but at the same time united such different and remote regions of the country.
Some time ago, the PRC Civil Aviation Administration adopted a development plan for the period up to 2030. During this time, the number of airports in the state should grow to 2000 (now there are about 400). That is, over a decade and a half in China, about 100 new air stations will open annually, one every three to four days!
Diversification of resource sources
Just three or four years ago, scientists and economists predicted an imminent collapse in China. According to them, such a huge economy, subject to the continuation of the current growth rates, may begin to lack resources in a few years. And this will lead to stagnation and further degradation.
But the Chinese have shown by their actions that they should not be buried ahead of time. The problem of lack of resources in the future in the PRC is being solved ... by investments. Businessmen from the Middle Kingdom are actively buying up arable land and mineral deposits around the world.
Africa is a particularly promising region for them in this direction. A huge amount of resources of the Black Continent are waiting for a skillful owner, and the weak and corrupt authorities of African states are happy to transfer the deposits to the Chinese for a song.
Chinese small and large businesses enter Africa, hundreds of thousands or even millions of Chinese workers go there. And they are working not for the good of African countries, but for the sake of their own prosperity and economic might of China.
Chinese businesses are also eyeing some European, South American and Russian resources. Especially, to sparsely populated, but resource-rich Siberia.
Education
China understands that the country's development is impossible without the presence of a huge number of highly educated professionals. Interestingly, two decades ago, children from good Chinese families tried to get into foreign universities, including Russian universities. Now everything has turned 180 degrees. More and more Chinese "golden youth" are left after school to "gnaw the granite of science" in the PRC, and representatives of the less well-off strata of the population go to Russia.
The fact is that in recent decades, China has made a huge leap forward in terms of education. The cult of study is imposed on the people of the PRC from an early age. A child's failure to attend school is an unthinkable thing, because it is education that gives him a chance for a better future.
And the state policy strongly supports the educational system. If in 2003 its budget was about $ 50 billion, then by 2011 this amount had grown five (!) Times. Moreover, there are more than two thousand universities in the country. And now students from all over the world are going to study in China. The same applies to the best teachers from Western countries, whom Chinese universities are trying to attract to work.
Ability to use other people's achievements and make them better
The Chinese are doing their best to take the best from the world without losing their own achievements. This can be seen not only on the example of foreign teachers in the universities of the PRC, but also in the economy and industry of the Celestial Empire.Ten, even five years ago, the world made fun of Chinese copies of iPhones and other goods. But, having learned to copy other people's successes, the craftsmen from the Celestial Empire began to create their own achievements on this basis.
An example of this is the strong growth in sales of Chinese mobile brands. Two or three years ago, only a few fans in the West knew about the existence of a company that produces mobile phones... Now Xiaomi has become the most successful start-up on the planet, the third largest smartphone manufacturer in the world after Apple and Samsung.
At the same time, Xiaomi itself did not have to invent anything. The company uses technologies developed for large market players. But it makes of these components much more interesting, high-quality and cheap devices.
Ability to wait
The Chinese amaze the whole world with their ability to wait. The continuous history of this state is about five thousand years. Therefore, in most of their actions, the Chinese do not strive to achieve the maximum result, maximum benefit in the shortest possible time. Their investments, their activity is calculated for the future, sometimes very distant.
For example, the aforementioned African lands and deposits that are acquired by Chinese businessmen do not really need them right now. But in ten to twenty years they will certainly be needed. And by that time, these will already be successfully cultivated fields, as well as fully functioning mines, quarries and factories.
This applies not only to economics, but also to politics. The Continental Chinese have not come to terms with the loss of Taiwan, but they do not seek to return the island by military means as quickly as possible, although they could. On the contrary, the PRC is pursuing the most lenient policy towards Taiwan, promising it as many benefits as possible if the two China unite.
This will not happen in the coming years. Perhaps the process will take more than one decade. But the Chinese know how to wait.
On this moment, residents of many countries of the world can envy the Chinese: their perseverance, their hard work, their success. But if the appearance of popular Russian smartphones is a matter of the future, then these.
Going to China, I was sure that the people of this country ride on rusty bicycles, at best, on coal-fired tricycles. The reality, as always, exceeded all my expectations.
Let's start with a small lyrical digression.
Once in Beijing, the first thing you notice is that the city is buried in clouds of smog. Sometimes in Beijing there is really nothing to breathe ... And this is half the trouble, because smog is also poisonous! Are the cars to blame for this? Undoubtedly. But they are not alone - rather, the point is in the abundance of industries, which are huge in northern China. Such is the side of progress. But the Chinese authorities are working hard to improve this disastrous situation.
Firstly, here and there forest belts are created to purify the air. Secondly, new standards of cleanliness for production are being introduced. Third, the authorities have taken seriously the development of the "green" public transport and the environmental friendliness of cars allowed on the streets of Beijing and other major cities.
What does it mean? This means that you will not see smoking auto junk in Beijing, because in the city you can only drive cars that meet strict environmental standards. For passenger cars, this is the China 5 standard, corresponding to Euro 5. My photographs were taken in the summer of 2012, when the Euro 4 standards were in force in the city.
Cars that were registered before the introduction of strict regulations are no longer allowed to take to the streets when the environmental situation deteriorates.
Compliance with this is closely monitored by the road inspection.
The entry of freight vehicles during the day is completely prohibited without special permission. Cry pickup owners, you won't get to the center of Beijing! Yes, not only in the center, you will not enter the fourth ring ...
There is also a struggle against the number of cars on the roads. There are over 5.5 million cars in Beijing. But to replenish the number of motorists, it is not enough to buy a car. To combat congestion, local authorities limit the number of license plates issued annually to 240,000.
The numbers are allocated using a special state lottery. The participation fee is about 8000 rubles for our money. In the country as a whole, about 3% of the participants win annually. If the budget allows, then rooms can be bought without queuing - it will cost 100,000 yuan, i.e. more than 800,000 rubles. In China, you can buy a pretty decent new car for this amount.
But that's not all in Beijing's fight against traffic: with an even last digit of the number, you can drive on even days, and vice versa. For nonresident car owners, entering Beijing requires a special permit. Such harsh measures are not popular, but the effect is striking - there are almost no traffic jams in the giant metropolis.
Those without a car ride bicycles and, more often, e-bikes.
Sometimes you can find electric motorized carriages.
In general, the city traffic is similar to the Moscow one, only there are more mopeds: the Chinese love good cars, and there are almost no local brands on the roads.
Native "Chinese" are almost less common than ours. Of the local brands, Chery and Great Wall are more common than others.
But Audi, Mercedes, BMW are on every corner.
The most popular models of German brands are produced in China (for example, the Mercedes has E, C and GLK classes), the rest are imported. Having an imported car is a real chic, because it costs much more than a "local" one.
The BMW Five, Audi A6 and Mercedes E-Class are especially popular in extended versions that are not found in other markets.
Rolls-Royce is the choice of the wealthiest Chinese.
The "American" Buick brand is for mid-level officials.
Hyundai and VW Passat of the second generation (Santana) are popular in taxi services. Such cars were produced in China until the end of 2013.
Outside Beijing, the pressure from environmental regulations is easing.
China 4 (Euro 4) norms are prescribed in the law for passenger cars, but as you understand, this applies to newly registered cars. But the China 2 (Euro 2) standards for passenger cars were introduced in China only in 2004 ... Moreover, for trucks with diesel engines, the Euro-4 standards were introduced only in January 2015, and before that, since 2007, the standards were in force Euro 3. So talking about the environmental cleanliness of Chinese cars outside the largest cities can be very conditional, but anyway, compared to, for example, the Russian car fleet, China undoubtedly wins in this matter.
Now about the roads. The Chinese are masters of construction. The roads in China are simply amazing, not even the European autobahns can compare with them. Adopted 30 years ago and designed for 50 years federal program road infrastructure development demonstrates complete success.
Wide highways and grandiose bridges are being built in record time, while the quality is high, since the contractor is responsible for the safety of the road for a couple of decades. The punishments for violating "socialist standards" in China are very strict, so the roads are excellent.
Strict adherence to simple yet effective technological rules makes Chinese roads the best I've ever seen. On a plump cushion of gravel and sand, metal reinforcement is laid, which is poured with a thick layer of concrete. After hardening, asphalt is laid on the concrete. Result: only the autobahns of Italy (the best in Europe) can be compared with the Chinese ones. And this despite the fact that the percentage of mechanization is minimal. The dude in the white shirt is clearly monitoring the quality of the work.
In most cases, the roads are toll, but there is something to pay for.
In fairness - patching is also found, but they do it conscientiously. For example, in this picture, a worker is blowing out of the pit all the crumbs that might interfere with the adhesion of the patch material.
The shittiest road in northern China looks like this, but a modern autobahn is already laid nearby.
Speed mode and movement Vehicle in China is tightly controlled. Automatic cameras are installed at all intersections and exits. In addition to the fine, one violation of the speed limit entails a penalty point. In total, 12 penalty points are allowed per year, if more - the rights are taken away and you have to re-enroll.
Speed cameras shoot cars from behind, so many drivers go for the trick and either hang up the numbers with rags or insert CDs into the license frames. Doesn't it look like anything?
Fortunately, tricks do not always work. This Lexus driver was caught red-handed ...
And for this owner of Camry with gold nameplates before my eyes, a real chase was launched.
It should be noted that there are practically no cars on the tracks. Apparently, the infrastructure is built in such a way that the Chinese do not need to travel anywhere outside their area, or it is simply too expensive. One way or another, most often there are expensive cars on the roads, which are always in a hurry somewhere.
Traffic campaign is duplicated in English. I wonder why? After all, in order for a foreigner to get behind the wheel, he needs to obtain a Chinese license, as well as attend to escort from the local KGB.
Unlike cars, all trucks and buses are of local brands. Higer and King Lion are the most popular buses. Normal buses, comfortable.
Among trucks, FAW and Foton are more common, suspiciously similar to Mercedes, Scania, Volvo.
Sometimes, however, you can see some semblance of "Americans".
Absolutely all local trucks are overloaded with the wildest, by Russian standards. It seems that in China there are no norms of loading and dimensions. Well, or they allow it :)
Car transporters are especially delivered, on which the cars on top are in two rows.
Everybody drives here on trucks. Even diesel locomotives.
And other unthinkable designs.
And of course, trucks carry trucks, which, in turn, also carry trucks ...
On the streets provincial towns- crowding and complete ignoring of traffic rules.
There are no restrictions for vehicles - trucks and pick-ups drive along the streets.
Cars are everywhere parked on the sidewalks, in some places you have to bypass them about the roadway. And this is the city center!
And on the streets of the same center you can find ruins and heaps of rubbish.
All this is wonderful to observe, standing in a dead traffic jam. There is no such thing in Beijing!
By the way, Harbin was founded by the Russians, and at the beginning of the 19th century, it was here that the largest Russian community outside Russia was located ... We will assume that this is a simple coincidence, because there are no Russians in Harbin for a long time.
In a remote province, taxis are often not “branded”, but native, truly “Chinese” ones.
Even the police drive "Chinese" here.
Trucks are no longer meeting any conceivable standards.
Self-made condo is an interesting technical solution.
Transportation rules are not grossly violated - there are no rules at all.
And here are the long-awaited three-wheeled cars! Such devices are of two main types, each of which looks enchanting in its own way:
Cars ...
... and freight.
The quality of workmanship suggests that in some cases, handicraft products, or simply homemade products. Soon they will go down in history. Normal cars will take their place.
The most popular urban transport in the northern Chinese provinces is motorized carriages, reminiscent of the "tuk-tuk" familiar from Southeast Asia.
Carts are rare in China, but can still be found.
And of course, in the countryside, normal boys drive tractors.
Village dressing
In a roadside cafe, you can always have a tasty snack with something inedible
In a shop nearby there will always be a set of spare parts for overhaul your truck, as they say, without leaving the checkout.
What else can I tell you about driving in China? Hold on: in 2 weeks I saw only 2 minor road incidents, which cannot be called an accident.
Obviously, we have a lot to learn from the Chinese ...
Did you like the text? Read other reports from my trip to China:It's no secret that Chinese economy develops by leaps and bounds. Of course, the development of the economy, industry and Agriculture unthinkable without the development of construction, services, business and infrastructure development. The transport industry, transport infrastructure have always been, are and will be the engines of the development of the economy of any state. And without the construction of new roads, railways and airports, it is impossible to build a successfully developed modern state.
Today, more than 700 meters of roads are being built in China per hour. Think about it. While you sleep at night, China will build another 5-6 kilometers of new modern roads... What is this "East Asian miracle" that we can borrow from the experience of building new roads from our neighbors?
Almost from scratch
Until fifty years ago, China was a backward country with a predominantly agrarian-oriented economy. There were almost no paved roads, since the communist authorities in China believed that there were more pressing problems in the country than the construction of roads and communication lines.However, in the 1980s, China realized that without the development of infrastructure, including the road, the development of the economy in the modern world is impossible. The country's authorities have created a plan for the construction of high-speed highways, while developing quality standards for the roadway. Funds for the construction of roads were found from the budget of the PRC, the budget of local authorities, as well as from service charges, additional duties and taxes when purchasing a car, and excise taxes on gasoline. Already with the construction of the first expressways, the Chinese authorities established fee for travel on the roads, in order to pay credit funds spent on their construction.
The first highway, almost 20 kilometers long, was built in 1988. After that, the pace of road construction from year to year begins to grow at a frantic pace. For 10 years, the PRC has built as many kilometers of roads as it took earlier the countries of Europe and the United States to build in half a century. The entire transport industry in the country grew before the eyes of the whole world by leaps and bounds. And if earlier roads were built with the help of two hands, a shovel and a wheelbarrow attached to a bicycle, now modern high-tech machines have appeared in the country.
In China, they do not even think to slow down the speed and pace of road construction. In 2001, the total length of expressways was 10 thousand km. In 2002 - 20 thousand km, in 2008 - 60 thousand km. In 2014, the total length of highways was more than 4 million kilometers, of which more than 100 thousand kilometers are high-speed highways. The state Program contains a project according to which by the end of this year, high-speed roads should connect all Chinese cities with a population of at least 200 thousand people. Moreover, along with the construction of roads, China is actively building bridges, crossings and tunnels. There are more than 300 thousand bridges in the country alone! And all this was built in 25 years. Recently, the Chinese authorities announced the construction of a bridge from Hong Kong to Macau, between which a high-speed cruise liner covers the distance in two hours.
Modern technologies
The Chinese are famous for being not so much inventors as manufacturers. Their construction technologies are borrowed from the experience of road construction in Europe, the USA and Japan. However, the Government of the country, scientists and technologists plan in advance the development of the transport network, taking into account the priorities in the development of the economy, passenger flows, transport potential of individual regions, etc.The state and local regional authorities exercise full control over the progress of road construction, but the contractor invests in the construction exclusively own funds... And only after the object is put into operation, the state and investors will pay the full amount to the contractor in accordance with the signed agreement. And this motivates the companies that have undertaken the work to complete them as soon as possible, which is very much lacking in our construction companies not only in the field of road construction.
Chinese socialism
Most of the travel on Chinese roads is free. But there are also toll roads - built for budgetary funds and private ones. For ordinary car owners, there is not much difference, however, the state road automatically becomes free after 15 years from the date of commissioning, while the private road becomes free after 25 years. The fare for passenger cars is from 1 to 3 rubles per kilometer, it depends on weather conditions and time of day. For trucks the fare is in the region of 3-7 rubles per kilometer. But in China, unlike Western Europe and Japan, in cities travel on the roads is free. Also in China, toll roads are always duplicated by free roads, which are also built for budget money.China's experience for Russia
Already today, China and Russia are actively cooperating on various infrastructure projects. For example, together they create projects of border crossings and build them with joint forces and means from both sides. There are also plans to build a bridge from Blagoveshchensk to neighboring Heihe, as well as a bridge from the village. Pokrovka in Transbaikalia to neighboring China across the Amur River.
Many road construction companies in China are interested in investing in Russia. They are interested not only in projects in the Far East, Transbaikalia and Buryatia. The Chinese want to participate in the construction of a high-speed highway from Western Europe through Russia to the western part of China. Also, two road construction companies in China are interested in the construction project of the Kerch bridge.
In conclusion, it is worth noting that it costs less than $ 3 million to build a four-lane one-kilometer freeway in China. We have 7 million. However, we have different legislation and various additional costs for the transfer of existing infrastructure facilities take up a significant amount of money. Only in China more than 10 thousand kilometers of roads are being built a year, and in Russia - 600 kilometers.
An article about roads in China: the history of roads, how roads are being built in the PRC now, the secrets of the strength and durability of Chinese roads. At the end of the article - a video about how the Chinese build roads.
The content of the article:
Roads for China have become a kind of symbol of successful public policy aimed at strengthening the country. Considerable attention is paid to the quality and speed of construction of highways that cut across the entire country and allow you to easily overcome rather large distances.
Half a century ago, the "old" China was an undeveloped country based on an agrarian-oriented economy. The Communist Party believed that there were a number of more pressing issues for the development of the state than the need to build roads.
As a result, the state was in the bottom lines of the rating of the countries of the world in terms of the length of roads with asphalt pavement. In 1949, all the country's transport arteries totaled over 80 thousand kilometers.
The density of highways was vanishingly insignificant - there were only 0.8 kilometers of roads per 100 square kilometers of area.
Photo: a road in China in the 30s
After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, a course was taken to restore the economy destroyed by the civil war. It was necessary to establish internal connections, and this required roads.
By 1952, the Chinese government managed to increase the length of the highways to 126,700 kilometers.
In the 1950s, the country needed to expand its usable economic zone, which entailed the development of border, previously unclaimed areas. The scale of construction was shocking - new roads were laid to the inaccessible mountainous regions of the country, and a network of highways began to develop in the border areas. At that time, highways were laid from Sichuan to Tibet, from Qinghai to Tibet.
The emergence of communist statehood required the strengthening of the country's defense capability and the mobility of the movement of troops. Therefore, for defense purposes, the construction of roads was undertaken in the southeast, northeast, southwest and along the coastal line of the PRC.
The growth of the economy brought the total length of paved roads to 500,000 kilometers by the end of the 1950s.
1960s were marked by incessant large-scale construction transport routes messages. The emphasis was placed on strengthening technical re-equipment, the length of roads with hard pavement continued to increase. Roads with a surface of the highest and highest classes appeared, allowing to develop significant speeds.
The middle of the 70s was marked by a full-fledged repair and expansion of the highway from Qinghai to Tibet. As a result of the redesign, the highway became the first paved road in the world located so high above sea level.
Photo: Qinghai-Tibet road
Considering the difficult terrain of the Middle Kingdom and its cultural traditions, in parallel with the development of road construction, it was also required to create bridges that would be durable, fitting into the classical Chinese canon.
During this period, bridges of the so-called "Chinese specificity" were built - arched structures made of stone, reinforced concrete and beams had double bends, withstanding preliminary stress.
Over the thirty years since the establishment of the PRC, despite the difficulties of economic development, road construction has developed, demonstrating stable growth. By the end of the 1970s, roads had reached 900,000 kilometers, which meant an average annual increase in road surface of 30,000 kilometers. The density of roads has increased, amounting to 100 square kilometers already 9.3 kilometers.
The rethinking of the role of transport arteries at the government level has led to active work and lower levels authorities, the propaganda machine was "turned on", calling on all fellow citizens to the fact that if the country wants to become prosperous and rich, then for this it is necessary to build good roads.
The government of the country has started a plan to build an extensive network of highways of national importance and high-speed national highways. The plan contained a key goal, and the path to achieving it was broken down into stages. At the same time, the scale of road construction has steadily increased, and the quality of roads has improved.
They even developed a special standard for the quality of the roadway, the observance of which was strictly carried out.
The emergence of high-speed, high-quality roads has turned the backward road industry into a very prosperous one. Funding for the ambitious road project has undergone a change, and additional sources of money have begun to appear.
In addition to the amounts allocated from the state and local budgets, excise taxes on fuel were introduced. In 1984, the State Council of the republic decided to increase the road maintenance fee and began collecting the newly introduced duties on the purchase of a car. It was allowed to charge money for travel on high quality highways.
Since 1985 legislative acts, ensuring the stability of financing "construction of the century", fell as if from a cornucopia. Supported by the government, the industry was able to reach a total road length of 1,350,000 kilometers by the end of the century for a total road density of 14 kilometers per 100 square kilometers. Roads of the second category grew from 1.3% at the end of the 1970s to 12.5% by the turn of the 21st century.
The condition of the central roads connecting cities has improved. The level of rural and county highways has increased, their quality has improved, some provinces proudly reported on the 100% paving of asphalt on all roads from the second class and higher, using new technologies. As a result, this led to the fact that in all counties of the country in most settlements, including small villages, roads were laid.
In the photo: a mountain road in China
Highways of steel the best example road construction. When the first 18.5 kilometers long Jiading-Shanghai highway was launched in 1988, it was tested, making sure that the technology was reliable and correct.
Over a decade of construction, China has done the amount of work for which the developed countries spent at least forty years. The level of road construction has grown from a primitive shovel and wheelbarrow attached to a bicycle to a manufacturer of high-tech road technology. The gap between the PRC and the prosperous in terms of economic development countries was rapidly declining.
Appetite comes with eating…
Pictured: modern road construction in China
Currently, the growth rate of multi-lane roads in China is about 30,000 kilometers per year, and the technology of placing concrete slabs, poured on top of concrete, guarantees a 25-year "shelf life" in continuous operation.
Given the harshness of Chinese law, road workers are punished for violating construction standards for the entire warranty period. The punishments are strict, but, as a result, the roads are excellent.
The growth rates of the roads of the Celestial Empire have reached fantastic speeds. V early XXI over the centuries, 10,000 kilometers of roads were built. Two years later, there were already 20,000 kilometers of them, in 2008 - 60,000 kilometers, and in 2013 China already owned 4 million kilometers of highways, of which a tenth were modern highways!
By 2020, in China, by decision of the government, the total length of roads should be at least 3,000,000 kilometers.
The Chinese have shown a serious attitude by adopting the Transport Development Program (until 2015). According to the Program, the entire country was permeated with a network of express roads connecting all cities with a population exceeding the threshold of 200,000 people.
Today, there are more than 300,000 bridges in China, of which more than a thousand are more than a kilometer long. Of the seven longest bridges in the world, by the way, seven are in China!
Often, recently erected is put as an example. So that the port in Shanghai could receive large-tonnage ships, a special port was built on the neighboring island, to which an eight-lane road was drawn from the mainland along the bridge, the length of which was 32.5 kilometers! The construction lasted three years, during this time the bridge was built, equipped with high-quality coating and lighting.
Photo: Donghai Bridge
In terms of the number of available highways, the country ranks second in the world, and this despite the fact that all high-speed highways arose within just 20 years.
The authorities at all levels keep the construction under control, although money for it comes from contractors. The state pays for the contractor's work only after the work has been completely handed over. Moreover, no price increases and going beyond the limit of the set amount of the contract are not allowed.
The high speed of construction is largely the result of such a policy, because the faster and better the road is built, the faster the return on investment.
Sadly, in ten days the Chinese build about the same number of roads as the entire road service of Russia “mastered” in 2008.
The "secret ingredient" of Chinese builders
In the photo: a multi-level interchange in Shanghai
In China, a large money supply, which is aimed at maintaining the necessary infrastructure. They try to build roads according to the latest technology, thus bypassing the investment of money in their innovation in the near future.
In the period from 2005 to 2010, investments in the network of high-speed national highways amounted to 18 billion dollars annually, but now, when all highways are in operation, the costs have decreased slightly, amounting to 12 billion. Celestial roads have reached a quality that even European highways cannot boast. except for Italian.
Technological rules make China's roads the best. The main thing is to follow a simple and effective construction scheme:
- a plump pillow of sand and gravel is poured;
- metal fittings are laid on top;
- everything is poured with concrete;
- the concrete is rolled into a thick layer of asphalt.
How is the movement organized
Any movement of transport and speed limits on the territory of the country is constantly monitored:
- cameras are installed everywhere;
- a single violation of the speed limit adds a penalty point to the driver's dossier;
- it is permissible to score 12 points per year, if it turns out more, they are deprived of their rights and sent for retraining;
- foreigners cannot drive cars.
- China - 2.9;
- Brazil - 3.6;
- Russia - 13.
In China, it is customary to study the costs of the global road market, and then charge contractors within the country half the amount. Payment is made only on the fact of the work performed, and the quality should suit even the most picky commission, which does not accept any finishing touches.
The contractor independently insures the built highway, making repairs from insurance funds.
What roads are there in China
Photo: 50-lane road in China
Most of the highways in the Middle Kingdom are free. There are two types of paid ones:
- state (budget);
- commercial (personal).
Conclusion
Economic development is impossible without good roads. China is doing nothing special, although economic growth has been described as nothing less than a miracle. Thoughtful Government program multiplied by a system of adequate punishments and rewards, the found sources of funding are the integral parts of China's success in road construction!
Video on how the Chinese build roads:
