The plan comprises 13 separate new line projects, which will add a total of 775km to the railway network, two track expansion projects, and the redevelopment of Guangzhou Railway Station and Guangzhou East Railway Station. The plan envisages that the region will have 4700km of railway infrastructure in operation or under construction by 2025, expanding to 5700km by 2035, covering all major cities in the region.
The plan comprises seven new line projects on which construction will start before 2022:
- Qianhai Free Trade Zone - Huicheng South section (including Dapeng branch line) of the Shenzhen - Huizhou line (133km, Yuan 78.1bn)
- Shenzhen Airport - Pingshan section of the Shenzhen Airport - Daya Bay inter-city line (70km, Yuan 43.5bn)
- Guangzhou North - Guangzhou section of Guangqing inter-city line (26km, Yuan 6.3bn)
- Guangzhou - Dongguan - Shenzhen inter-city south extension (35km, Yuan 24.4bn)
- Xiaojinkou - Huizhou North section of the Guanhui inter-city line (8km, Yuan 4.3bn)
- Guangqing Intercity north extension (21km, Yuan 6.3bn), and
- Guangzhou - Guangzhou South (15km, Yuan 7.7bn).
Construction on a project to add a fifth and sixth track between Guangzhou East and Xintang (29km, Yuan 5.8bn) and to redevelop Guangzhou East Railway Station Reconstruction Project (Yuan 2.5bn) will also start before 2022.
A further seven new line projects, one track expansion scheme and the redevelopment of Guangzhou Railway Station (Yuan 18.3bn) are planned but with no confirmed start date:
- Zhongnan - Tangxia section of the Zhongnanhu inter-city line (63km, Yuan 22.2bn)
- Tangxia - Longgang (65km, Yuan 22.4bn)
- Changping - Longhua (40km, Yuan 16.5bn)
- Nansha - Zhuhai (79km, Yuan 48.6bn)
- Foshan - Guangzhou - Dongguan (107km, Yuan 95.3bn)
- Guangzhou East - Huadu Tiangui (38km, Yuan 28.5bn)
- Fangcun - Baiyun Airport (39km, Yuan 32.5bn), and
- Guangzhou - Guangzhou East track quadrupling (7km, Yuan 5.5bn).
NRDC says the new projects will improve integration with existing high-speed, suburban railway networks as well as transit services at major hubs centred on Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Zhuhai, on the border with Macau, along with Zhaoqing East and Pearl River Delta Airport stations. The goal is to offer journey times of one hour between the major cities in the Greater Bay Area and in Guangdong province, and three hours to other provincial capitals.
Guangdong province is responsible for the organisation and implementation of the projects. The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area covers 56,000km² and has a population of 72.65 million.
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