Vehicles on Beijing-Zhuhai expressway divert to move

Source: CCTV.com | 01-31-2008 13:35

The Beijing-Zhuhai expressway has been closed for 17 days due to the icy surface caused by the bad weather. In the Hunan section of the expressway, stranded vehicles are moving, as an alternate route has been cleared. Traffic can use it to enter Guangdong province via a neighboring region.

Heading south on the Beijing-Zhuhai expressway, the central part is now open. Ice on the surface is melting. If an accident occurs and blocks the road, police will direct drivers to an alternate route.

But heading south, things don't look so good. Clearing work continues, but many are still stranded here. Armed policemen are providing hot meals for them.

Zhao Fudong, deputy commissar of Hunan Armed Police Unit, said, "Since last Friday, we have dispatched 13,000 officers and men, over 500 vehicles to make things easier for the stranded passengers."

30 kilometers of the expressway into Guangdong are covered with ice. Alternate routes are recommended.

Li Shenglin,Minister of Ministry of Communications, said, "To ease the traffic pressure on Guangdong, and Hunan provinces, we demanded today, that vehicles on the north-south trunk go via Hubei and Henan provinces."

Motorists are advised to leave Guangdong via the neighboring Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

By doing so, they avoid the expressway toll, can make use of the assistance service along the alternate road, and get a subsidy of 200 yuan, or about 30 US dollars.

Editor:Zhang Ning