New subway line for Beijing by 2022

A new subway line in Beijing connecting the Yizhuang economic development zone in Daxing district and Future Science City in Changping district will be in operation by the end of 2022.

The line will ease traffic congestion in the capital’s northern residential area, local officials said on Monday.

The construction of the new line 17, which spans 50 kilometers, began in 2015.

The line is planned to run through the central business district, the Wangjing residential community in Chaoyang district, and Tiantongyuan neighborhood in Changping, with a total of 21 stations.

It is expected to play an important role boosting the economic development of Beijing’s northern suburbs and provide convenient transport to residents in Tiantongyuan, an enormous neighborhood that’s considered one of the largest residential areas in Asia, the city’s development and reform commission said.

The line is a rail transit line, and the average distance between stops is 2.4 kilometers. Trains will pass through stations every two minutes.

When the construction is completed, the rail transit service will improve passenger capacity in the city’s northern suburbs, according to local development and reform authorities.