In 2025, Jiangsu coordinated efforts in advancing the pilot project of boosting China’s strength in transport and building a demonstration zone for transport modernization. The province made vigorous efforts to develop a comprehensive modern transport system, with its overall transport development remaining among the top in China.
Infrastructure
Work on the comprehensive three-dimensional transport network advanced at a faster pace. The province boasted a total road mileage of 159,000 km, with Grade-I national and provincial highways accounting for 79.2%. The expressway network extended 5,415 km, ensuring connectivity to all county seats and full coverage of cities and towns with a population of over 100,000. The operational railway mileage reached 4,730.7 km, including 2,594 km of high-speed rail. All prefecture-level cities are now connected by bullet trains, and the framework of a “rail-connected Jiangsu” is largely in place. Additionally, a total of 40 urban rail lines were in operation in nine cities, with a combined mileage of 1,279 km. The province is home to nine transport airports and 10 Grade-A1 general aviation airports.
The development of “Water Transport in Jiangsu” was in full swing. Jiangsu boasted a vast inland waterway network totaling approximately 24,000 km, accounting for about one-fifth of China’s total. This included 8,869 km of graded waterways, which accounted for nearly one-seventh of the national total, ranking first in both total length and density nationwide. The Yangtze River and the Grand Canal, two major national water transport arteries, ran through the province. The Yangtze River Jiangsu section, just one-seventh of the total navigable length, handled a remarkable 70% of the river’s total cargo transport. The Grand Canal South-Jiangsu section has developed into a Grade-II waterway. The province had 2,761 km of trunk waterways at Grade-III or higher levels, connecting 87% of its cities at county level or above, as well as 57% of its industrial zones at provincial-level or above. Notably, 86.1% of the province’s planned trunk waterway mileage has been incorporated into the national ports and waterways layout plan. Jiangsu housed 6,882 productive berths, including 606 that could accommodate vessels of over 10,000 tonnes. The province was home to seven major ports, each with an annual throughput exceeding 200 million tonnes. Altogether, Jiangsu’s ports had an annual handling capacity of 3.07 billion tonnes and an annual cargo throughput of 3.72 billion tonnes. In terms of cross-Yangtze River passages, 21 passages have been completed, with eight more under construction. Prefecture-level cities separated by the Yangtze River were now directly connected with one another by cross-river links.
The initiative to build “Four Good Rural Roads” (referring to rural roads that are well-constructed, well-managed, well-maintained, and well-operated) achieved high-quality development across the province. A total of 1,867 km of rural roads were newly built or upgraded, bringing the province’s rural road network to approximately 140,000 km. The goal of building two-lane Grade-IV roads for all villages has been largely realized. Jiangsu boasted 30 national model counties for the “Four Good Rural Roads” initiative. The province promoted the integration of rural roads with other sectors under the “Rural Roads Plus” initiative. Longyouwan Road (Diding Road) in Rugao, Nantong was recognized as “Roads Passing by My Doorsteps: The Most Popular Road” by the Ministry of Transport. The “Taihu Bay Flower & Tea Tour” route in Binhu District, Wuxi was recommended as a quality route for leisure tourism (in spring) by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs under China’s Beautiful Villages initiative. The Hongze Lake Tourism Highway in Huai’an was selected as one of China’s top 10 new cases of “highways bolstering rural revitalization”.
Mobility
The integration of urban and rural transport systems continued to improve. Jiangsu ranked among the top in China in terms of the number of urban public transport vehicles and routes as well as the total operational mileage. About 76.2% of cities in inter-provincial adjoining areas and 100% of the neighboring counties (county-level cities, and districts) within the province had access to public transport services. Approximately 30% of the bus services in the province were customized.
Green and low-carbon transformation was accelerated. There were 169 service facilities along national and provincial highways, including 77 “Gonglu Yizhan”, a non-profit service facility brand, equipped with 604 charging piles. Fifteen photovoltaic power projects have been built at roadside service facilities and toll stations along national and provincial highways, and 784 designated EV charging parking spaces have been built at 140 service facilities in cumulative terms, accounting for 18.7% of the total parking spaces for cars. Stranded vehicles on expressways were exempted from both towing fees and crane fees. Road clearance and rescue services arrived at the scene within 30 minutes upon receiving an alarm in 99.25% of the cases, and 98.72% of accidents were handled within one hour. Smart sensing facilities have been installed for 1,600 km in cumulative terms along the navigable waterways of the Yanhe River Huai’an section and the Danjin-Licao River Jintan section. In addition, electronic navigation charts covered 8,675 km of inland waterways.
