CONSTRUCTION of a new terminal at Shenzhen International Airport, Terminal 3, will start Oct. 1.
Terminal 3 will become a new hub with an extensive transport system connecting it with Guangzhou and Dongguan cities in the north and the Hong Kong airport in the south.
According to the construction plan, Metro Line 11, which will link the Futian Central Business District with the new terminal, will enable travel time between the two areas to be reduced to less than 30 minutes.
The Terminal 3 project, which will be built on barren land reclaimed from the sea, was approved by the National Development and Reform Commission in June 2006. The airport extension project headquarters started the civil engineering and landfill projects to prepare for the construction of the rail transport system right after receiving approval.
A new terminal and an underground rail system are urgently required to meet the increasing traffic volume at the Shenzhen airport, yesterday’s Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported. The city government has asked the headquarters to finish the projects by June 2011, before the Shenzhen Summer Universiade opens.
Passenger throughput at the Shenzhen airport increased by 18.36 percent yearly in the past five years, official statistics show. In 2007, throughput exceeded 20 million for the first time. The airport expects to handle 45 million passengers a year by 2020.
(Han Ximin)