China to strengthen integrated transport network by 2030

China plans to put 95 percent of the planned backbone of its national integrated transport network into place by 2030, up from 91 percent at present, as it shifts its focus from rapid network expansion toward better connectivity, efficiency and resilience, officials said at a news conference in Beijing on Tuesday.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30), the country will continue improving railway, highway, waterway, civil aviation, postal and express delivery infrastructure while accelerating the development of a more integrated logistics network.

"Building major cross-regional and cross-river corridors is no longer simply about spreading out projects or expanding construction," Vice-Minister of Transport Xu Chengguang said. "It is about optimizing the spatial layout, opening up the arteries of economic circulation and promoting more balanced regional development."

By 2030, China plans to carry out infrastructure renewal and digital transformation across about 80,000 kilometers of its transport network, build or renovate 500,000 km of rural roads and improve intermodal connections at around 1,000 major freight hubs and terminals to make cargo transfers among railways, highways, waterways and airports more efficient.

Major corridor projects will include coastal high-speed railways, upgraded highways along the land borders and coastline, transport links along the Yangtze River and new cross-river, cross-sea and cross-bay connections. Xu said the coastal railway and major border and coastal highways will form a "golden outer ring" linking border regions and the coastline, supporting tourism, regional development and goods transportation.

China will also strengthen the resilience of international supply chains by expanding global shipping routes, improving air cargo links with major overseas hubs and enhancing key logistics facilities, including overseas ports, to provide businesses with more transport options and reduce reliance on any single route or hub.

The railway sector will increasingly shift its focus from expanding the network to improving quality, capacity and integration.

"China has built the world's largest high-speed railway network and an advanced conventional railway network," said Wang Qiming, deputy head of the National Railway Administration.

Over the next five years, railway authorities will continue major construction projects while filling network gaps, easing capacity bottlenecks and improving connections between regions, cities and different modes of transport. Safety, digital technologies, low-carbon operations and more efficient freight services will also be priorities.

Civil aviation authorities said international air cargo will be a key focus during the next five years as demand grows from cross-border e-commerce, advanced manufacturing and other time-sensitive industries.

Han Jun, deputy head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, said the country will build an air cargo system that is "better connected, diversified, resilient, safe and reliable".

China plans to expand freight links with established and emerging markets, improve coordination between dedicated cargo aircraft and belly cargo capacity on passenger flights and strengthen cargo services at major aviation hubs in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Chengdu.

Airport cargo terminals, aircraft stands and road and rail links will be upgraded to speed transfers, while electronic waybills, digital logistics platforms and smoother multimodal transport will be promoted. China's air cargo and mail volume exceeded 10 million metric tons for the first time in 2025, including 4.4 million tons on international routes.

The postal and express delivery sector will strengthen a nationwide network of major sorting, warehousing and distribution hubs and improve connections with airports, railway freight terminals and logistics centers.

"Express delivery has become the lifeblood of urban circulation," said Chen Kai, deputy head of the State Post Bureau. By 2030, the sector aims to expand rural delivery coverage, improve international parcel services and digitally upgrade sorting centers, warehouses and cold-chain facilities to better support manufacturing, agriculture, retail and cross-border trade.

Xu said China invested 18.8 trillion yuan ($2.78 trillion) in transport fixed assets during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the largest investment and fastest network expansion in any five-year period since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. The country's comprehensive transport network now exceeds 6 million km, providing the foundation for a new stage focused on improving connectivity, efficiency and resilience rather than expansion alone.