Thursday, October 16, 2008

Chengdu Metro

Chengdu Metro is a system in Chengdu currently under construction. It will initially have one line, Line 1 which started construction in December 2005 and is expected to be completed by 2010. There will be five lines constructed in the first phase, covering 126km with 116 stations including 11 interchange stations. Line 1 will have 15 stations at first along the 15.1 kilometre route. The first phase will start from a station at Honghuayuan and end at Shiji Square. The system is the sixth metro system to be built in the People's Republic of China. It will be operated by Chengdu Metro Limited Liability Company.

Construction



The construction of the first phase of Line 1, costing 7 billion , will change the city. One of the metro planners said the construction of the metro will change the layout of residential quarters in the city, with residential areas moving out to the suburbs. A natural ventilation system has been used in the construction of the underground section of Line 1 on the subway system from Southern Third Ring Road to Chengdu New Exhibition and Convention Center. Square ventilation units are built every 30m along the subway top to allow fresh air from the ground enter the construction site underground. The method is used in subway construction in other countries as it cuts the construction cost and it saves energy. The subway system is the first in China to adopt such a ventilation system during construction. Chengdu Metro is planning to set up a section for subway fire control and introduce the latest fire fighting technologies and vehicles.

Rolling stock and technology


There will be 22 sets of three cars each when the line opens, made by a Chinese manufacturer, possibly the Changchun Car Company. The trains will be and can hold up to a maximum of 1,200 people. The cars will be 2.8m wide and 19m long. In the future, trains will be expanded to five cars. The rolling stock's average train speed will be 35km/h and its maximum speed will be 80km/h. The metro system will be equipped with Automatic Train Protection, Automatic Train Control, Automatic Train Stop and Automatic Train Operation. Fire alarms, on-train/track systems, and automatic fare collection systems will also be installed. A minimum curve radius of 400m will be used where possible, though some restricted areas will have a curve radius of 300m. The maximum gradient will be 35% and the railway tracks will be laid to standard gauge using 60kg/m rail, allowing a maximum speed of 80km/h. The power supply will be 750V DC with third rail collection and running rail return.

Network expansion


Seven lines are planned to be constructed over the next thirty years and five have been planned so far, with all around the city centre. When the whole of Line 1 is completed, it will have a length of 26.7km with 11.76km of underground tracks and 14.9km of tracks at either ground level or elevated. There will be a depot at Huayang, two main substations, ten traction substations and one control centre. Line 1 will interchange with and Chengdu South railway stations.

Future lines


*Line 2 — From Longquan East to Shiniu
*Line 3 — From Hongxing to Banqiao South
*Line 4 — From Wenjiang to Xihe
*Line 5 — From Simaqiao to Jianghe
*Line 6 and 7 — In planning stage, routes not confirmed

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