The country's expressway construction should aim at the future, urged an article in People's Daily.

There has been some doubt recently about whether China's expressway construction has taken place too quickly as light traffic flows and the heavy burden of loans are plaguing local governments in central and western areas.

The country's expressway mileage reached 25,000 kilometres by the end of 2002, ranking second in the world. And expressway construction has maintained rapid growth since.

According to forecasts of the Ministry of Communications (MOC), expressway mileage will increase to 70,000 kilometres in China by 2020.

Mounting worries of excessive freeway construction have led many experts to question the pace of building such new roads.

"If the traffic flow of a newly completed expressway reaches saturation point after two years, then there must be some problems in construction planning," said Dong Xuebo, director general of the Planning Department under the MOC.

Expressways are infrastructure involving huge investment and long-term construction. In particular, since resources of land and roads are non-renewable, expressways must transcend current traffic demands. Expressway planning and construction should be designed to fit anticipated economic and social development over the next 20 years.

According to a survey on national expressway operation, the traffic flow of most expressways is higher than expected. A total of 160,000 cars using each expressway every day - 2.4 times that of general national highways.

Expressways in economically developed areas are currently congested and the expansion of some of them is either under construction or under consideration. Expressways with light traffic flows are usually concentrated in central or western regions, such as Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Gansu Province.

But the development of expressways in western areas should not be directed at merely meeting current demands, the article stated.

Zhang Hanya, director of the Investment Research Institute under the State Development and Reform Commission, said loan payment problems and comprehensive economic returns should be taken into consideration when building expressways in the western areas. Improved transportation could upgrade the investment environment and stimulate economic development.

In addition, light traffic flows on expressways in western areas are mainly the result of currently insufficient usage and low ownership levels of vehicles. But in the coming one or two decades, national car ownership will rocket and economic activities will also increase. It is necessary to develop expressways on a large scale.

Furthermore, early construction will save investment and serve as an essential stimulus to local economic development.

"China's expressways are not excessive, but insufficient," said Feng Zhenglin,director general of the Department of Highways under the MOC.

Foreign studies show that only when expressways are linked to a network and continuous transportation mileage extends more than 800 kilometres can their advantages be brought into full play.

China's present total expressway mileage accounts for only 28 per cent of that of the United States, which stands at 89,000 kilometres.

Even in China's economically strong and densely populated coastal areas, a network of expressways has yet to take shape.

Such a network would enable people to drive on to an expressway within the shortest period of time.

It is reported that the US expressway network links all cities with a population of more than 50,000. And in Germany, all cities of 50,000 residents and 90 per cent cities of fewer than 50,000 residents have been connected with expressways. German citizens can reach the expressway within 20 to 30 minutes.

But in China, among 302 cities with a population of above 200,000, only 184 cities are linked by expressways.

The country's expressway construction plan states only cities of more than 200,000 residents will be linked to the expressway network by 2020.

China's expressways still need further development, said the article.

Scepticism exists that expressways occupy more land and generate more pollution than ordinary roads. Especially in developed areas in the east, construction of expressways on a large scale will not be beneficial to the sustainable development of transportation.

But expressways have the special advantage of "door to door" transportation, which cannot be replaced by other means of transport such as railways.

Fully closed expressways, with overpasses and heavy traffic flows, will provide a transportation environment of high efficiency.

It is estimated that land coverage and the cost of expressways per kilometre is 2 to 3 times those of second-class highways but its traffic capability could be 5 to 10 times higher. Since the country's resources of land and traffic routes are very precious, construction of expressways will help ease the burden on resources for transportation construction.

As for pollution and noise made by vehicles, studies show the discharge of pollution is closely related with the service quality of expressways. Expressways can ensure vehicles are run at speeds where pollution discharge and energy consumption remain at their lowest levels. Moreover, all expressway construction projects include building green belts which can reduce exhaust and noise pollution.