An aerial view of the Shanghai-Suzhou-Nantong Yangtze River Bridge, which spans 11.072 kilometers. [Photo provided by Xu Congjun to nantong.gov.cn]

Nantong in East China's Jiangsu province has always put the construction of transport facilities first to build a comprehensive transportation hub, said Lu Weidong, deputy mayor of Nantong, at a recent press conference.

Statistics show that in 2021, Nantong invested 23 billion yuan ($3.39 billion) in transport facilities, up 42 percent year-on-year, and this year the city plans to set aside 31.6 billion yuan for transport facilities.

With 66 kilometers of riverbank along the Yangtze River and 206 km of coastline, Nantong is the only city in Jiangsu that is located along both a river and sea.

Chen Ning, deputy director of the Nantong municipal bureau of transport, said that the city has made significant progress in the construction of railways and roads crossing the Yangtze River.

Air transport in Nantong has also experienced rapid development and inland waterways have been continuously under construction in the city, Chen added.

For example, the Shanghai-Suzhou-Nantong Yangtze River Bridge, Yancheng-Nantong high-speed railway, and Hai'an-Qidong expressway have opened to traffic, while subway lines one and two are about to open.

The comprehensive plan for Nantong Port has recently received approval from the provincial government, the Lyusi port area has been put into operation, and several major projects worth 10 billion yuan have started production at Tongzhou Bay.