Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region is scheduled to invest around 140 billion yuan ($21.67 billion) in building 30 expressways totaling 2,109 kilometers in 2021, officials from Guangxi expressway development center said on Jan 11.

The construction of several expressway projects will be sped up in 2021. These include the Guangxi section of the expressway linking Guangdong's Lianshan and Hezhou and the Pubei-Beiliu expressway. Meanwhile, construction on projects including the Guangxi section of the expressway connecting Guangdong's Guangning county, Cangwu and Zhaoping and the highway between Beiliu and Guangdong's Gaozhou will soon commence, with the aim of helping Guangxi further integrate itself into the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

The Nanning to Nabu town, Yulin section of the highway connecting Nanning and Guangdong's Zhanjiang, with an overall investment of around 23.95 billion yuan, stretches about 187.2 kilometers along its main line.

Being an important part of the construction of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, the project started construction in Jan 5 and is expected to become a major channel linking Guangdong and Guangxi, alleviating regional transportation pressure and contributing to the development of the Greater Bay Area.

The Datang-Pubei expressway, which was built at a cost of around 10.9 billion yuan, was put into operation on Dec 30, 2020, shortening the vehicle travel time between Nanning and Guangdong from more than six hours to just over three hours, and becoming the most convenient expressway linking Nanning and the Pearl River Delta.

Officials added that Guangxi is planning to start or is continuing the construction of 105 expressway projects, putting 5,200 km expressway into operation during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25).

It is estimated that the total length of expressways in operation in Guangxi will reach 12,000 km and that all counties in the region will be connected via expressway by the end of 2025.