The Ministry of Transport (MOT) and Ministry of Science and Technology jointly issued a guideline mapping out key transport technology based on innovation for China through 2035. The guideline emphasises making technological breakthroughs in the transport sector. It sets the goal that self-reliance on key transport technology will be achieved by 2035.
The guideline also plans out a series of research and development tasks on fundamental research, core technology, modern engineering technology and front-tier disruptive technology to bolster supply. Adhering to the philosophy of coordinated development of upstream and downstream industrial chains, transformation and upgrading of transportation construction, equipment and service sectors will be fully promoted.
Mechanisms will optimise to spur the vitality of innovative entities as much as possible. Legislation in artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous driving, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) will be studied and drawn up.
China has been promoting several pioneering intelligent public transport systems in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Changsha and Wuxi. As one of the demonstration areas, Xiangjiang New Area of Changsha, capital of Central China’s Hunan province, has seen intelligent buses routinely on the road. Shanghai has opened an 8.5-km intelligent public transport line in Lin’gang New Area, which has eight bus stops. Passengers can make appointments via cell phone apps for using intelligent buses which run clockwise for about 30 minutes on a single trip.
Though the smart public transport service is currently limited to selected areas, they have been tried in a variety of application scenarios such as residential communities, commercial areas, and industrial parks to increase transportation efficiency and save fuel consumption.
The demonstration pioneers have been constantly fine-tuning and upgrading the systems while extending the mileage of safe operation, increasing the number of passengers, pouring investment in technology upgrading, and infrastructure construction to cope with the demand for intelligent public transport.
The transport sector will continue to improve service quality to benefit people as it builds on major progress made in the past. The ministry aims to provide more convenient, faster, and more comfortable services to benefit more people. An integrated service system will be established. People will look for a better and more convenient transfer service when they make transfers between different modes of transportation. the industry will plan transfer hubs with multiple transportation modes following the concept of “zero-meter transfer” to allow passengers to make transfers more easily.
The sector also aims to provide faster services and will continue to build high-speed railways and civil aviation facilities to enhance transportation capacity. A two-hour transportation circle will be established within city clusters. More comfortable transportation services will be provided. In urban areas, bus, metro, and taxi services will be improved. The transport system will benefit more people through the promotion of the unified development of bus services in urban and rural areas. The industry has already established a faster, more convenient passenger transport service system, which includes bullet trains and domestic aviation
China’s civil aviation regulator will promote AI and digitalisation in the industry to make flying more convenient. such services include passengers scanning their faces before embarkation, making the status of checked luggage visible during the journey, and providing services that allow checked luggage to be delivered to homes.
The transport sector has also paid more attention to environmental protection. By the end of last year, China had 466,000 new energy buses, comprising about 66% of all city buses. Research and development of green technology will be promoted to build a more efficient and environmentally-friendly railway system. China’s transportation sector has developed rapidly since 2013.