China honors sustainable commitment with greener, smarter transport

BEIJING, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- China has made solid progress in developing the country's sustainable transport and contributing its efforts to the U.N. sustainable development goals, as the world still faces obstacles and needs closer cooperation in sealing a sustainable future.

Countries should work together to boost transport connectivity, expedite green transport transformation, and build smart transport infrastructure to create a sustainable transport system that is safe, convenient, efficient, green, economical, inclusive, and resilient, China's Vice Premier He Lifeng said at the Global Sustainable Transport Forum on Monday.

Held in Beijing on Sept. 25-26, the forum has attracted about 1,000 participants, including government officials, officials from international organizations, and business representatives.

"China is a global leader in many aspects of green and sustainable transport, with high-speed rail and electric vehicles being just two examples of its progress," said Siddharth Chatterjee, U.N. resident coordinator in China.

Official data show that by the end of 2022, China's comprehensive transportation network has exceeded 6 million kilometers. The country also has the world's largest network of high-speed railways.

By the end of 2022, the total mileage of rural roads has exceeded 4.53 million kilometers.

Li Xiaopeng, Minister of Transport, said that the economy and people's livelihood in the vast rural areas have benefited from the roads, which is a part of the contributions that transportation has made to the early realization of the poverty reduction goal of the U.N. 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Gao Peng, deputy mayor of Beijing, said in the first eight months this year, the number of shared-bike rides in the city reached 716 million, an increase of 12.11 percent over the same period last year.

The country's sustainable transport not only focuses on green and low-carbon development but also on making the sector smarter and more efficient.

According to Baidu Vice President Shi Qinghua, the tech company has built a large traffic model that integrates elements, including cars, roads, and cloud computing, to help make transportation smarter.

SF Express, a leading Chinese courier enterprise, adopted "digital twin" technology, which helps verify and optimize algorithm strategies at low cost, thus optimizing logistics distribution routes in the real world.

The transition to a sustainable transport sector can be a challenging process and requires joint efforts of all.

Calling for sustainable transport cooperation, Chee Hong Tat, Singapore's acting minister for transport, cited a Chinese saying "ren xin qi, tai shan yi," which means when people are of one mind and heart, they can move Mount Tai.

China is willing to work with all parties to promote the "hard connectivity" of transport infrastructure and enhance "soft connectivity" of system rules, said the vice premier.

These actions will contribute to implementing the Global Development Initiative, realizing the U.N. 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, and constructing a community with a shared future for humanity, the vice premier added.