Ministry of Transport： High-speed congestion has been significantly alleviated after the cancellation of provincial toll stations.

　　BEIJING, Aug. 27 (Xinhua)-At the regular press conference held by the Ministry of Transport on the 27th, Sun Wenjian, a spokesman, said that since the resumption of toll collection on May 6, the national expressway network has been running smoothly, the congestion situation has been obviously alleviated, and the traffic efficiency has been significantly improved.

　　At the meeting, a reporter was concerned about the operation of the national road network since the national highway toll was resumed on May 6. Sun Wenjian made a related introduction to this:

　　First, the traffic volume has basically recovered. With the further recovery of China’s economic and social order, the data of June and July show that the total traffic volume of expressways in China has reached 1.7 billion, which has recovered to 97.4% of the same period last year, and the recovery speed is still relatively fast.

　　Second, the traffic efficiency has been significantly improved. In June and July, the traffic data of expressway networks in 26 provinces across the country showed that the average speed of vehicles increased from 61 kilometers per hour in the same period last year to 71 kilometers per hour now, of which trucks increased from 51 kilometers per hour to 55 kilometers per hour, and buses increased from 67 kilometers per hour to 84 kilometers per hour now.

　　For the improvement of highway traffic efficiency, Sun Wenjian believes that there are several main reasons:

　　First, the provincial toll station has been abolished, and the provincial toll station is no longer congested, and vehicles can pass through the provincial toll station unimpeded.

　　The second is the application of ETC card in trucks and buses. The utilization rate of ETC card in buses has exceeded 70%, and the utilization rate of ETC card in trucks is close to 50%. These two factors have obviously improved the traffic efficiency of the whole expressway network. There is a typical case, that is, on the Beijing-Guangzhou line, the long-distance truck from Beijing to Guangzhou saves a day’s travel time before and after the stop, which is very strong for truck drivers.

　　Third, the congested road sections have been greatly reduced. In June and July, the average daily number of congested and slow-moving sections of expressways in China was 2,453, a decrease of 379 compared with the same period of last year, with a decrease of 13.38%. There are 271 expressway toll stations with daily congestion in China, a decrease of 431 compared with the same period of last year, which is even more obvious, reaching 61.43%. These two indicators can show that the highway traffic has become more and more smooth.

　　Fourth, the traffic volume of trucks increased and the no-load rate decreased. In June and July, the number of expressway trucks in China was 506 million, up 13.05% year-on-year. Among them, the average no-load rate is 24%, which is 4.1% lower than the same period of last year. As the main force of expressway transportation, the average heavy-load rate of large trucks with five axles or above is 61.6%, which is 4.3% higher than the same period of last year. The actual load rate of trucks has obviously increased, one of which has decreased by 4.1% and the other has increased by 4.3%, which well illustrates the impact on trucks after changing from weighing to axle charging.

　　Sun Wenjian pointed out that at present, the Ministry of Transport is paying close attention to the operation of the road network after the withdrawal of the station, scientifically evaluating relevant policies, and making timely amendments to ensure that the broad masses of people can travel with satisfaction.