Airport Link Line expected to open by end of 2024
Shanghai's Airport Link Line is scheduled to open to public by the end of the year.
Shanghai's Airport Link Line is scheduled to open to public by the end of the year, according to its constructor, Shanghai Shen-Tie Investment Company.
The urban railway line which connects the city's two airports, Hongqiao International Airport and Pudong International Airport, is under trial operation.
It runs 68.6 kilometers with nine stops, passing through three districts, Minhang, Xuhui, and the Pudong New Area.
An interior look of train running on the Airport Link Line.
Once opened, the line will significantly cut the travel time between Hongqiao International Airport and Pudong International Airport to around 40 minutes.
Currently, the main structures and rail tracks of the seven stations of the sector between the two airports have been completed.
"Based on the current testing progress, the empty-load operation of the train is expected to conclude by the end of November, with safety assessments expected to commence in early December," said Xu Ganfeng, the party secretary and executive director of Shanghai Suburban Railway Company.
Digital screens in train carriages show the current station, interior temperature, and which side door will open at the next station.
Next, the line will undergo inspection and certification processes as well as safety assessment before its operation, which is expected to begin in late December.
The line is one of five under-construction urban railway lines in the city, and is the east-west backbone line of Shanghai's urban railway network.
In the future, including the currently under-construction Airport Link Line, Shanghai's intra-city railway network will interconnect and operate across lines. Passenger will be able to save trouble from transfers between lines, according to Lin Qiang, general manager of Shanghai Shen-Tie Investment Co.
The segment of the Airport Link Line has seven stops.
"Currently, the technical specifications of this railway adopt the national railway standard, and it operates in a public transportation mode," Lin said.
In addition, the urban railway will be connected to the city's Metro network as well as urban railway service of other cities within the Yangtze River Delta.
"Zhongchun Road Station, the only over-ground station on the Hongqiao Airport-Pudong Airport sector of the line, will serve as the transfer station to Metro Line 9 after operation," Lin said.
The city also made an effort to improve the service and experience when transferring between the Metro and bus networks, with nearly 90 percent of Metro stations having bus services within 50 meters, according to officials with the city's transportation commission.
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