Shanghai's municipal government has recently issued the "15th Five-Year Plan for Comprehensive Transport Development in Shanghai" (referred to as "the Plan"), in line with the city's 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development. This strategic blueprint aims to drive high-quality growth in the city's integrated transport system and reinforce its status as a global shipping center. The Plan outlines a comprehensive approach to modernizing infrastructure, services, and governance over the next five years.

Where to start

The formulation of the Plan is based on four key considerations. First, it strengthens alignment with national strategies, serving as the roadmap for the city's transport development while fully integrating national requirements such as building a transportation powerhouse and advancing Yangtze River Delta integration. It anchors the city's mission to become a "five-center" hub and aligns with the Ministry of Transport's "one network, four modernizations" focus. Second, it grounds itself in the city's actual development context, ensuring targets are forward-looking yet feasible, neither overreaching nor falling short, to balance innovation with practicality. Third, it prioritizes innovation-driven growth, emphasizing the cultivation of new quality productive forces in transport to upgrade infrastructure, services, and governance across the board. Fourth, it adheres to a people-centered philosophy, making transport more accessible and beneficial to citizens, enhancing efficiency, service quality, and overall travel satisfaction.

Development goals and indicator system

By 2030, Shanghai aims to establish a "people-oriented, efficient, smart, green, and resilient" world-class integrated transport system for its international metropolis. The city's global shipping center status will remain top-tier, its comprehensive transport network will rank among the world's best, its transport governance capabilities will lead the nation, and citizen satisfaction with travel experiences will see significant improvement. To support these goals, the Plan sets 15 key indicators across four dimensions: international shipping center development, integrated transport backbone networks, transport services, and green low-carbon initiatives. These include metrics such as container throughput, rail-sea intermodal volumes, water-to-water transshipment ratios, air passenger and cargo volumes, and passenger transfer rates at Pudong International Airport, all designed to elevate the shipping center's global influence.

Consolidating Shanghai's global shipping center influence

For the port sector, the Plan focuses on enhancing port infrastructure capacity and resilience. Key projects include accelerating the Xiaoyangshan North container terminal and supporting works, completing the second phase of the Luojing port container terminal renovation, and advancing the expansion of Yangshan Deepwater Port Phase II alongside optimizing Luojing operations. The city will also systematically plan new strategic spaces for port development. Additionally, the Plan calls for improving multimodal transport networks by completing the Waigaoqiao container railway center and port dedicated lines, boosting the capacity of Luchaogang center, and accelerating the construction of the Shanghai-Hangzhou (Huzhou) railway and Situan hub. The Dalu Line east extension will be largely completed to enhance the main channel for direct river-sea container transport. In the digital, intelligent, and green transition, Shanghai will promote the development of green fuel bunkering, trading, and certification centers for international shipping, achieving a million-cubic-meter capacity for bonded LNG bunkering and a million-ton capacity for methanol and biofuel bunkering. High-end shipping services will be upgraded through enhanced insurance capabilities, stronger legal frameworks, and leading international shipping trading platforms. The city also aims to accelerate the construction of a Asia-Pacific cruise economy center and a top-tier cruise tourism hub.

For the airport sector, the Plan emphasizes strengthening ground resource support by completing the fourth phase expansion of Pudong International Airport and advancing the construction of Nantong New Airport. It outlines a comprehensive international aviation hub network with a route structure spanning "one circle, six corridors, and five channels," alongside a nationwide domestic route network and a high-quality backbone network. Airport operations will be enhanced by improving transfer functions at Pudong, establishing cross-airline, cross-ground-service, and cross-terminal transfer systems, and positioning the hub operator to create a "super carrier" based in Shanghai. To solidify its leading position in global air logistics, the city will build a global freight network and accelerate the development of a worldwide postal and express delivery hub. Finally, the Plan promotes digital, intelligent, and green airport transformation through collaborative dispatch systems and increased use of renewable energy at airports.

Advancing regional integration and the Yangtze River Economic Belt

The Plan outlines key tasks to deepen regional integration and support high-quality development along the Yangtze River Economic Belt. In terms of infrastructure connectivity, Shanghai will accelerate the construction of a "rail-borne Yangtze River Delta," completing projects like the Shanghai-Nantong Railway Phase II and the Shanghai-Chongqing-Chengdu High-Speed Railway, while advancing the Shanghai-Hangzhou High-Speed Railway and Shanghai-Zhapu-Hangzhou Railway to establish a "four-direction, ten-line" rail network. The city will also build a demonstration zone for high-quality inland waterway transport, working with neighboring provinces to advance key routes like Hangshen Line, Sushen Inner Port Line, and Sushen Outer Port Line, and promote water-to-water transshipment and direct river-sea services. Road network connectivity within the Shanghai metropolitan area will be enhanced through optimized corridor layouts, integration with the national coastal strategic corridor, and improved links with the Jiangsu coastal economic belt and the Hangzhou Bay city cluster. Key projects include completing the S16 highway and G50 highway renovation, and advancing cross-provincial road connections. On the service front, the Plan focuses on upgrading integrated transport services by promoting integrated rail operations around Shanghai, expanding the "one-code pass" pilot for Yangtze River Delta integration, and enlarging cross-city connectivity. For freight, it will enhance the efficiency of the Yangtze River Economic Belt multimodal transport center and improve inter-provincial consultation mechanisms. Governance will be strengthened through joint urban transport coordination mechanisms for neighboring cities, shared information platforms, and unified standards, along with enhanced regional enforcement coordination and emergency response.

Expanding and improving the rail transit network

The Plan details efforts to further expand Shanghai's rail transit network during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. In terms of planning and construction, the city will improve urban line services by completing lines such as Line 21 Phase I and its eastern extension, Line 23 Phase I, Line 15 southern extension, and Line 13 western extension. Construction will also advance on Line 19 and Line 20 Phase I with its eastern extension, enhancing service coverage for key areas like Hongqiao Hub, Oriental Hub, Wujing, Wusong Innovation City, and new towns. The city will accelerate the development of a suburban rail network, completing lines like Jiamin and Nanhui, and progressively advancing the Nanfeng Line to increase rail coverage for towns with over 100,000 residents. Future planning will also focus on improving rail connectivity between new towns and the city center, strengthening support for national strategic zones and key development areas. For operations and services, the Plan emphasizes enhancing transport efficiency through refined capacity allocation based on passenger flow patterns, and steadily advancing major rail renovation projects to improve system reliability and stability. Service quality will be upgraded through improved station environments, enhanced accessibility and age-friendly facilities, and optimized waiting and transfer experiences. Night and large-event transport capacity will be bolstered to manage heavy passenger flows efficiently. Safety and resilience will be reinforced through robust risk prevention, strengthened safety management, and improved emergency response and recovery capabilities.

Strengthening road and waterway networks

For road systems, the Plan aims to build a comprehensive, well-layered, and city-wide network. Key tasks include upgrading expressway service levels by optimizing the northern network layout, expanding western corridor capacity, and enhancing the southern coastal corridor to support key development areas. Projects include completing the G1503 Yangtze River tunnel section in Pudong and the G15 highway Jiajin section, while advancing the S2 highway renovation and S3 highway Phase II construction. Rapid transit corridors and underground roads in the central city will be improved, with projects like Zhou Deng Expressway and Caobao Road Expressway, to enhance distribution efficiency for Hongqiao and Oriental hubs. National and provincial trunk roads will be strengthened to alleviate bottlenecks, and the "one river, one creek" channel layout will be refined to promote integrated transport across the Huangpu River and Suzhou Creek. For waterway networks, the Plan focuses on building a modern inland waterway system with enhanced river-sea direct transport capacity. Key measures include improving the high-grade waterway network by coordinating navigation capacity across the Huangpu River and other channels, implementing a "north-south orderly, stepwise diversion" strategy, and completing channels like Youdungang and Luoweihe. Projects such as Sushen Inner Port Line, Sushen Outer Port Line, Hangpingshen Line, and Dazhi River West Hub expansion will be planned, with accelerated efforts to perfect the "three directions, four mouths" gateway layout. Port shoreline use will be optimized for intensive and efficient development, with a focus on building public port areas like Baihe and Waigaoqiao, improving existing berth efficiency, and strengthening shoreline management. Inland waterway services will be extended to industrial parks and major towns to better support regional economic development.

Building a comprehensive transport hub system

The Plan outlines key arrangements for developing an integrated transport hub system. For passenger hubs, Shanghai will build a system that is internationally oriented, regionally connected, and city-serving. This includes completing the Oriental Hub Shanghai East Station, enhancing Hongqiao Hub's comprehensive functions, and creating a dual-engine opening pattern linking the east and west. Baoshan Station will be completed to establish a "four main, multiple auxiliary" railway passenger hub layout. New town hubs like Qingpu New City will be built, while Fengxian and Nanhui New City hubs will be advanced to complete the new town hub system. For freight hubs, the Plan focuses on building a modern system centered on sea and air hubs, supported by railway freight yards and inland public port areas, supplemented by multi-level urban nodes. This includes enhancing services from railway freight stations and inland ports to industrial parks, exploring the transformation of some existing railway freight stations for urban logistics, and supporting functional upgrades for northern freight lines like the Nanhe branch in Putuo, Baoshan, and Jing'an districts.

Driving digital, intelligent, and green transformation

The Plan outlines major breakthroughs in digital, intelligent, and green transport transformation. In digitalization, Shanghai will strengthen the data foundation of the transport sector, promote the development and utilization of public transport data, and build a big data system for road traffic surveys. Technologies like Building Information Modeling (BIM), artificial intelligence, and digital twins will be applied across the full lifecycle of transport infrastructure construction, management, and maintenance. In intelligence, the city will tackle technical challenges in major infrastructure maintenance, break through innovation bottlenecks in transport equipment, and support the development of smart ships and new energy-powered vessels. The construction of a leading high-level autonomous driving demonstration zone will continue, and the planning and construction of low-altitude infrastructure such as public air routes will be explored to enhance low-altitude air traffic service capabilities, support precise supply and efficient use of low-altitude airspace, and promote orderly development of low-altitude logistics and delivery. In greening, the Plan calls for building green transport infrastructure, improving charging and swapping facilities for passenger cars and heavy trucks, and expanding marine charging and green fuel bunkering facilities. Transport energy structures will be optimized to basically achieve new energy adoption in urban public vehicles and classify freight transport by type. Non-road mobile machinery and vehicles at ports and airports will transition to new energy. The city will continue to prioritize public transport and slow traffic, optimize travel mode structures, advance pollution control and ecological restoration, strengthen transport pollution prevention, and enhance carbon emission governance systems.

Refining transport governance through nine key actions

To enhance modern and refined transport governance, Shanghai will implement nine key actions during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. The first is a slow traffic improvement action, which will progressively restore non-motorized vehicle rights of way on roads where they are currently banned, clear at least 100 slow-traffic network gaps, and create 30 premium slow-traffic zones. The second is an integrated two-network enhancement action, optimizing bus routes along rail transit lines to strengthen feeder services and improve supporting facilities around rail stations. The third is a traffic congestion relief action, completing 100 congestion improvement projects annually while maintaining total car ownership controls to guide orderly vehicle growth. The fourth is a facility renewal action, continuing major rail transit renovations, rejuvenating the inner-ring elevated road, and upgrading at least 500 kilometers of rural roads. The fifth is a parking comprehensive management action, building 20,000 public parking spaces based on local conditions, promoting staggered shared parking from parking garages to surrounding residential areas, and addressing parking issues at major hospitals. The sixth is a passenger transport transformation action, creating a multi-tiered bus network, dynamically regulating taxi fleet sizes, promoting coordinated development of ride-hailing and traditional taxis, and establishing a comprehensive regulatory system for ride-hailing services. The seventh is a logistics cost reduction and efficiency enhancement action, conducting city-wide logistics system planning, accelerating the construction of port, railway, waterway, and highway logistics infrastructure, and serving the three major logistics systems for customs, industry, and daily life. The eighth is a safety and resilience guarantee action, building a risk prevention and control system to dynamically eliminate major accident hazards, enhancing transport construction safety, implementing essential infrastructure safety improvement projects, and strengthening operations safety management in key areas. The ninth is a government service improvement action, optimizing the list of responsibilities, upgrading "efficiently handling one thing" services, advancing toward "smart and excellent handling," and building a deeply integrated online-offline service network to foster a first-class business environment.