New Hongqiao runway unveiled
The second runway at Shanghai's Hongqiao International Airport started taking planes yesterday on a trial basis.
Full service will begin next Tuesday when the airport opens its new terminal.
The new arrivals will help increase annual passenger capacity by 60 percent, according to the airport operator.
Li Derun, vice president of the Shanghai Airport Authority, said yesterday that the Hongqiao facility would continue to be the city's major domestic air travel gateway, only with a more passenger-friendly environment.
The airport is expected to handle 40 million passengers a year by 2015, with the new terminal servicing about 30 million and the existing one about 10 million.
The airport handled 25 million passengers last year.
Up to 90 percent of carriers at the Hongqiao airport will switch to the new terminal.
The eastern extension of the city's Metro Line 2, leading to the new terminal, would also open next Tuesday, traffic authorities said yesterday in a government press release.
Line 10 will open a stop next to the terminal by October.
Passengers can also board four daytime bus lines and two night services from downtown to the airport.
A direct bus route will open during the Shanghai 2010 World Expo to take visitors to the Expo site in Pudong.
City drivers can reach the new terminal via three elevated roads - Beidi, Yan'an and Jiamin. Drivers from the provinces can go via Songze Elevated Road.
There will also be shuttle bus service between the two terminals.
From now until next Monday, the new runway will only open for about one to two hours during slack traffic.
From Tuesday the two runways will handle 33 landings and take-offs each hour.
The volume would increase during the World Expo to 45 planes per hour, Li said. --(3/12)
Ayes for increased holidays
A proposal at the annual legislature meeting to prolong Spring Festival and May national holidays has been hailed by many Netizens.
Ma Yuanzhu, a congress delegate and president of a tourism company in southwest China's Sichuan Province, suggested that the Spring Festival break should be prolonged to 14 days from seven and the May 1 holiday from four to seven days.
Ma said if his proposal was passed it would provide great stimulus for the tourism industry.
A survey conducted online showed 60 percent of respondents welcomed the longer-holiday suggestion.
For example, some office workers in big cities said a longer May break would mean it is easier to visit their parents at far-away hometowns. --(3/11)
Snow worries: It's a spring thing
It snowed in Shanghai yesterday, causing an excited reaction from both residents and tourists - after all, isn't this springtime?
Sleet began about 7:30am and later turned to snow when the sun came out, sticking around until the evening in some parts of the city, the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau said.
The taohuaxue - literally "peach flower snow," referring to spring snow in March - was more prevalent in the 1970s and 80s than in recent years as "the weather is getting warmer overall," said Man Liping, chief service officer of the bureau.
Ren Zhixiao, a 50-year-old resident, said he had not seen such heavy March snow for almost 30 years but the phenomenon was not unusual when he was young.
"At the age of about 10, I used to go skating with my friends on a frozen lake after spring snow, Ren said.
Many younger city residents were caught unawares.
"I've never seen snowflakes in March with the sun shining above," said Huang Jingyi, 27, a white-collar worker.
Huang's colleague, Shen Tingting, said she was worried about the rare weather and was looking for some expert explanations.
Man said the total fall yesterday was 0.4 millimeter.
"It's just like a shower in summer and indicates imminent good weather," Man told Shanghai Daily.
The snow continued last night, leading to an 18-car, chain-reaction crash on the Inner Ring Road in Yangpu District. Two people were slightly hurt in the pile-up.
Under the influence of the cold front, the minimum temperature is expected to touch minus 3 degrees Celsius this morning and as low as minus 5 in the suburbs.
The bureau yesterday issued a yellow frost alert, the second highest of the three-level system, reminding farmers to take care of crops.
The city should warm up again quickly, with temperatures predicted to sharply rebound from tomorrow.
The weather is forecast to be sunny to cloudy tomorrow with temperatures ranging from zero to 13.
Friday's maximum is expected to be a pleasant 19. --(3/10)
Barriers coming
The city's subway operator said yesterday that it will add more barriers to the passages between Line 1 and Line 2 at the People's Square Station to avoid passenger crushes when they transfer between the two lines.
More than 90,000 people transferred between the two lines yesterday from 7am to 9am. --(3/9)
Green light for metro line 13
The only subway line going through the Expo site has passed evaluation by Shanghai traffic authorities.
Metro Line 13 will have five six-carriage trains with each train capable of taking about 2,000 passengers at intervals of six minutes.
Security and ticket checks will take place at Madang Road Station where the line connects with Line 9. --(3/8)
Authorities get rid of chemical hazards
A total of 82 companies producing dangerous chemical products near the World Expo site have ceased production or transferred to areas outside the Outer Ring Road, local authorities said yesterday.
That means a decrease of 282,000 tons of chemical substances produced, used or stored along the Huangpu River, Expo site and downtown area, an official surnamed Hu with the Shanghai Work Safety Administration said.
By 2012, all companies, some 282 businesses, producing or storing chemical substances within the Outer Ring Road will have moved into industrial parks across the city.
The work safety bureau would also be closely monitoring the transport of flammable and highly poisonous substances during the six-month Expo, which begins on May 1.
Sun Huashan, deputy director of the State Administration of Work Safety, said yesterday that authorities in Shanghai and neighboring provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang would cooperate on the transport management of dangerous chemicals.
He said special channels for chemical substances as well as special loading or unloading bases would be set up in the three areas with information shared. --(3/6)
Blood needed
Medical staff from Ren'ai Hospital donated type A and O blood yesterday to help solve a shortage. The Xuhui District Blood Administrative Office has set up three teams for emergency donations. --(3/5)
Hongqiao all clear for take-off
The second runway at Hongqiao International Airport will be put into use next Thursday, five days ahead of the opening of the airport's new terminal.
The airport will then have two runways and Shanghai will become the first city in China to have two airports and five runways.
The timing of the dual openings is impeccable, coming less than two months before the massive domestic and international visitor influx expected for the six-month World Expo.
Hongqiao was the city's first international airport, opening in 1964.
In 1999 Shanghai opened the larger Pudong International Airport.
The city's airport operator said yesterday the March 16 opening of the new Hongqiao terminal was on schedule.
The construction and extension projects at the airport yesterday passed a two-day inspection conducted by civil aviation authorities.
More than 50 experts and officials joined the inspection that covered both equipment and operation systems.
The new runway passed a construction inspection in late December.
The second runway, 3,300 meters long, is 365 meters west of the original one and will handle the world's largest passenger plane, the Airbus A380, plus cargo aircraft.
The airport operator said that 11 airlines, including Air China and China Southern Airlines, would switch their flights to the new terminal.
Detailed landing and take-off procedures will be controlled by the regional civil aviation administration bureau.
The operator said the runway would relieve pressure on the busy airport. About 500 flights land and take off there daily.
Hongqiao International Airport is undergoing a 15.3 billion yuan (US$2.24 billion) expansion, including the new terminal and runway, as part of the Hongqiao Transport Hub.
The older airport failed to meet passenger demands.
It had a designed capacity for 9.6 million passengers a year but handled more than 25 million last year.
With its second terminal and runway, the airport is expected to have 40 million passengers a year by 2015. --(3/4)
Shanghai stocks fall ahead of meetings
Shanghai's stocks closed lower yesterday as most heavily weighted shares were flat ahead of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference which starts today.
The Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.48 percent, or 14.73 points, to close at 3,073.11. Turnover totaled 124.6 billion yuan (US$18.2 billion).
Steel makers and oil firms were weak. Baoshan Iron and Steel Co, China's biggest steel maker, fell 1.34 percent to 8.09 yuan. PetroChina dipped 0.84 percent to 12.95 yuan. Wuhan Iron & Steel lost 1.16 percent to 6.83 yuan.
The annual meetings of the CPPCC and the National People's Congress are important and "investors should pay attention to ... see if there is any shift in policy," said Chen Wei, an analyst at United Securities.
Low carbon technology-related shares gained after the Securities Times reported yesterday that a proposal to promote a low emission and green economy will top the CPPCC meeting.
Jiangsu Guotai International Group gained 8.61 percent to 25.85 yuan and Shenzhen Desay Battery Technology Co Ltd rose 10 percent to 11.61 yuan.
Another gainer was Beijing Yanjing Brewery Co which said it plans to raise 1.2 billion yuan by selling five-year convertible bonds. Its shares rose 3.16 percent to finish at 20.82 yuan.
Metal suppliers dropped on profit taking after Monday's rise.
Yunnan Copper Co retreated 4.74 percent to 26.72 yuan, Jiangxi Copper sank 4.62 percent to 36.76 yuan and Zhongjin Gold Mining Co lost 1.59 percent to 49.55 yuan. --(3/3)
For flight times, dial '96990'
Passengers can call "96990" to check the timetable of flights at the city's two airports, Hongqiao and Pudong. The hotline, which started yesterday, is in both Chinese and English.
It will be convenient for travelers during the coming World Expo, said the city airport operator. The operator said the original hotline "5260-4620" for Hongqiao International Airport was shut off. People can also send text messages of the flight numbers to "021-2333-0999" to get the flight information. The cost is 0.1 yuan for each message. --(3/2)
Green and cool stand to gain
China's air-conditioner makers will benefit from rising sales and higher prices this year, with energy efficient models expected to dominate the market as the country embarks on efforts to cut carbon emissions, experts said.
"The combined net profits for the first half are likely to jump dramatically due to a lower base last year and on a sales boost sparked by the government's stimulus measures to trigger domestic consumption," said Deng Yongkang, a Shanghai Securities Co analyst.
Suning Appliance Co, which distributes 20 percent of the country's air-conditioners, said in a latest report that sales on the mainland could rebound 10 percent to 36 million units boosted by the government's measures to prompt sales of greener models and encourage rural consumption.
A robust demand for inverter air-conditioners and other energy-efficient models will help to raise profit margins as well, said Wang Nianchun, an analyst at Guosen Securities Co.
Suning also estimated air-conditioner prices to rise 10 percent this year after falling 15 percent on high inventories and shrinking exports in 2009.
Shanghai Securities Co forecast Gree Electric Appliances, Guangdong Midea and Qingdao Haier to gain. --(3/1)
|
Contact Us 
