Jiangsu shortens the charging period of 11 highways

At the same time as the 12 illegal toll collection stations were evacuated, there were 11 other “overage roads” in Jiangsu that had been cut. The General Office of the Jiangsu Provincial Government issued a notice on the re-approval of the toll collection period of some expressways, and adjusted the charging period for 11 expressways, including the Nanjing Yangtze Third Bridge. The nine operating expressways were all charged from the original 30 years. Squeezed to 25 years, the two government repayment highways have been shortened from the charging period of the past 20 years to 15 years.

The Yangtze River Third Bridge Chargeback Period Returns to 2030

11 "over-age" highways have exceeded the national deadline

In May last year, five ministries and commissions, including the Ministry of Transport, deployed special clean-up work on toll highways. One of the important tasks was to “resolutely cancel charge items that expired.” The ministries and commissions require that the toll roads for the repayment of highways in the provinces of the eastern region should not exceed 15 years and the toll for commercial highways should not exceed 25 years. This time, the 11 "overage" highways cleared by Jiangsu have all exceeded the "Toll Road Management Regulations".

The most eye-catching of these is the Nanjing Yangtze River Third Bridge. As early as the opening of the train, the tentative charging period for the Yangtze River Third Bridge was once 25 years, but in 2009, due to the unsatisfactory operating conditions of the Third Bridge, the charging period was extended to 30 years in order to recover the cost. The news at that time caused public skepticism. Some people have calculated according to the bridge's toll rate, and calculated that the average daily traffic volume of the bridge in 2008 will be 20,000 vehicles. After five years of extension, the public will at least close to 550 million yuan. The relevant departments explained that the Sanqiao project was established in 2002. It was earlier than the “Regulations on the Administration of Toll Roads” promulgated by the State Council. It can be used as an “old way”. After this clean-up, Sanqiao’s charge period has returned to 25 years, and there are currently 18 years left.

The Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway was not included in the clean-up period for the 36-year charging period. The Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge has not been included in the clean-up yet. It is still 30 years.

Previously, the "old age road" with more public concern also included the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway. The Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway is also the first expressway in Jiangsu Province. It was opened to traffic in 1996 and the original charging period was 2027. On April 1, 2004, Ninghu Company decided to invest 105.4 billion yuan to expand the two-way eight lanes, after which the provincial government approved it. The period for charging was extended to 2032, so the total number of years of charge reached 36 years, which exceeded the 25-year limit set by the state for a full 11 years. However, the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway has not been included in this list of clean-up re-approved years. Relevant persons told reporters that the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway’s extension of the charging period due to additional investment applications is in line with the state policy and is also approved by the provincial government.

In addition, the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge, which has the same charging period as the Three Bridges for 30 years, has not been included in the clean-up list. The Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge was opened to traffic on March 26, 2001. The charge period was March 26, 2031.

How to stop charges after the expiry of the charges and study the possibility of adjusting the expressway network charging standards at that time

In contrast to the 11 highway tolls announced by the provincial government this time, the shortest remaining charge time is Ninghuai Expressway and Ningluo Expressway. After losing 5 years, the two expressways will face free opening by 2021. However, the current situation is that Jiangsu Expressway operates on the South Network and North Network. The charges are on one plate, not one. After getting on the high speed, the owner receives a card at the entrance and pays for the fee at the exit at high speed. However, there is not only one path to choose from. According to the person in charge of the Provincial Expressway Networking Management Center, due to the high density of road networks in Jiangsu Province and the existence of a wide range of multi-paths, they are calculated on the shortest route. After Ning Luo and Ning Huai have reached the high-speed charge period, they must stop charging. However, there is no precedent for how to stop. At present, the number of years for stopping charges on various expressways varies, and the industry also speculates whether it will be achieved through policy adjustments in the future. For example, adjusting the charging period of all expressways to a relatively concentrated time, or by adjusting the fees, etc., is still unknown, but it needs to be further studied by the government.

11 Expressway Projects and Re-approved Charge Term No. of Expressway Charging Projects Fees Terminated January 1st Nanjing Yangtze River Third Bridge 2030.10

2 Coastal Highway Yancheng to Nantong Section 2030.11

3 Suhuai Salt Highway Suqian to Huai'an Section 2030.11

4 Ring Taihu Expressway 2031.10

5 Coastal Expressway Lianyungang to Yancheng Section 2031.11

6 Huaiyan Expressway Huai'an to Yancheng Section 2031.11

7 Nanjing Expressway 2032.9

8 Zhenyuan Highway 2032.9

9 Jingfu Expressway Xuzhou West Ring Section 2032.7

10 Ninghuai Expressway 2021.12

11 Ning Luo Expressway Jiangsu Section 2021.9