'World-class waterfront spaces' taking shape in Shanghai
The zigzag-shaped Huangpu River divides Shanghai's downtown into Pudong and Puxi areas.
Shanghai plans to create "world-class waterfront spaces" along the Huangpu River and Suzhou Creek by further opening up some 20 kilometers of the Huangpu riverside by 2025.
The plan follows the grand opening of a downtown Huangpu River section covering a total of 45km on both sides of the river as well as 42km-long creekside paths along the downtown Suzhou Creek.
The continuous riverfront space will now be further expanded both to the south and northward to the city's outskirts to benefit more residents, said Zhu Jianhao, vice director of the Shanghai Housing and Urban-Rural Development Commission.
The new waterfront areas to open to the public include a 5km section along the Wusong River in northern Baoshan District, a 7.3km section in Pudong's Gaoqiao Port and Sanlin, a 3km section south of the Xupu Bridge, the remaining waterfront region in Yangpu District and some riverside space in Minhang District.
The Shanghai government has released the 14th Five-Year Plan for the riverside development along the Huangpu River and Suzhou Creek by 2025.
According to the blueprint, the Huangpu River will feature a golden waterfront showcasing Shanghai's core urban competitiveness and a world-class parlor with global influence.
The creekside will become a "demonstration of modern life with comfortable living, working, traveling and recreational environment."
Large parks and greenbelts will be built in the riverside regions, while existing public spaces and riverside paths will be improved.
The downstream section of the Suzhou Creek.
About 4 square kilometers of new parks and greenland, equivalent to over 550 standard football pitches, will be built along the river.
Key projects include the Expo Culture Park within the former site of the 2010 World Expo, the Wedge Park in Pudong's Sanlin Town, the second phase of the Binjiang Forest Park in Pudong, the greenbelt beneath the Yangpu Bridge as well as the sightseeing flower bridge of Dongjiadu area in Huangpu District and new parks around the Lanxiang Lake, known as the largest artificial lake in Pudong.
The environment of the creek banks will be further improved, especially the area under the Changshou Road Bridge in Jing'an District and many residential communities along the creek.
The creek is part of a 125km waterway that originates in the Taihu Lake in Jiangsu Province and winds through the cities of Suzhou, Kunshan and Shanghai before finally emptying into the Huangpu River. The Suzhou Creek is known as the Wusong River for most of its journey.
The riverside development spanning 42km involves Huangpu, Hongkou, Jing'an, Putuo, Changning and Jiading districts. Each is displaying unique waterfront attractions.
Zhu said the downtown sections of the creekside regions will be further opened to the public by the end of 2021.
The creek banks on the upstream section in the suburban districts of Minhang, Qingpu and Jiading will also be developed and opened to the public with larger coverage of greenbelt than the downtown sections.
New parks and riverside greenland covering some 800,000 square meters will be developed along the creek by the end of 2025, according to the blueprint.
The Waibaidu Bridge in Puxi and the Lujiazui financial hub (background) in Pudong.
