6th Ring Road (Beijing)

The 6th Ring Road (Simplified Chinese: 六环路, Hanyu Pinyin: Liu Huan Lu) is an expressway ring road in Beijing, China which runs around the city approximately 15-20 kilometres from the centre of the city.

Although it is the city's fifth ring road, it is named the 6th Ring Road.

Route

The 6th Ring Road runs within the confines of the municipality of Beijing. It is one of the most circular routes but still remarkably rectangular.

Basic Route: Liuyuan Bridge - Liqiaozhen - Sanhui Bridge - Zhangjiawan - Majuqiao - Huangcun - Liangxiang - "Mentougou - Zhaikou/Wenquan" - Xishatun - Gaoliying - Huosiying - Liuyuan Bridge

Note: Portions under construction or under projection are in "italics".

It is on the outer fringes of Beijing, and even beyond Beijing Capital International Airport. The expressway ring road is the only one to link with the equally remote Jingha Expressway.

History

As early as 2000 or 2001, the southeastern stretch from Sanhui Bridge (interchange with the Jingha Expressway) through to Majuqiao (interchange with the Jingjintang Expressway) was put into operation. The route was first referred to as the projected 2nd Expressway Ring Road, much like the 5th Ring Road was once referred to as the 1st Expressway Ring Road; however, the long name was ditched in favour of the present-day 6th Ring Road.

By 2002, a road section starting in Xishatun (interchange with the Badaling Expressway) through to Sanhui Bridge, as well as a stretch from Majuqiao through to Huangcun/Shuangyuan Bridge (interchange with the Jingkai Expressway), were complete and opened to the general motoring public.

Another 43 km of the expressway ring road is opening behind schedule (the portion linking it up with the Jingshi Expressway and ultimately ending in Liangxiang in December 2004 and the section from the Badaling Expressway to Wenquan/Zhaikou in Mentougou in early January 2005). They were slated for a November 2004 opening. In the first case, the expressway was opened on December 20, 2004, at 14:00 local time, with over a month's delay.

Portions under construction

By 2002, over 50% of the expressway ring route was opened to traffic, spanning from the northwestern end linking with the Badaling Expressway to the southern end linking with the Jingkai Expressway.

The 19.6 km northwestern segment (heading west) from Xishatun near Changping District to Wenquan in Mentougou District, and a 23.8 km portion connecting with the Jingshi Expressway and Liangxiang from the Jingkai Expressway were slated for November 2004. The portion Xishatun - Wenquan has been delayed until early 2005; despite this, the southern stretch opened on December 20, 2004.

The tallest viaduct so far for Beijing, that at the elevated crossroads of the 6th Ring Road with Jingzhou Road, has been completed. The 6th Ring Road soars a magnificent 13 metres over a Jingzhou Road of height 6 metres above ground. A very long bridge -- Dingshui Bridge, 2564 metres in length -- is on this stretch of the road, too.

The remainder of the 6th Ring Road will tackle with the mountainous terrain in west Beijing's Mentougou District. A portion of the expressway will interlink directly with the district town of Mentougou.

Due to the tough hilly terrain in the west, completion in full of the expressway ring road is yet to be completed; full completion is expected as early as 2005. By early October 2004, a basic projected route appears to have been finalised.

Road conditions

peed limit

Minimum speed limit of 50 km/h, maximum 100 km/h, throughout. Potential speed checks at Zhangjiawan and 500 metres to the east of Yongdingmen/Langfang exit; otherwise, none. It is not rare for passenger cars to zip well in excess of that speed limit, while to see lorries underperform in speed.

Southwestern 6th Ring Road: carriageway-separated; note: there are no "overtaking lanes" on this part of the ring road; left lane, maximum speed limit 100 km/h, minimum 80 km/h, designated "car only"; right lane, maximum speed limit 100 km/h, minimum 60 km/h, designated "carriageway".

Tolls

CNY 0.5/km, minimum charge of CNY 5, based on price for a small passenger vehicle. There have been (a few) calls to eradicate "all" toll gates within the confines of, and including, the 6th Ring Road. However, little to no action have been taken on this matter. Linked with Jingshi, Jingcheng, and Jingkai Expressways toll systems.

Lanes

4 lanes (2 up, 2 down) throughout.

urface conditions

Generally excellent.

Traffic conditions

No traffic jams apart from the exit at Xishatun.

Major exits

Xishatun, Gaoliying, Sanhui Bridge, Zhangjiawan, Majuqiao, Huangcun/Shuanghui Bridge, Liyuan Bridge

ervice areas

None; Beihuofa Service Area is projected (E. 6th Ring Road), as is a gas station on the Southwestern 6th Ring Road

Connections

* Projected Jingping Expressway: Would most likely connect near Liqiaozhen.
* Jingha Expressway: Sanhui Bridge.
* Jingshen Expressway: Zhangjiawan.
* Jingjintang Expressway: Majuqiao.
* Jingkai Expressway: Huangcun/Shuangyuan Bridge.
* Jingshi Expressway: Liyuan Bridge
* Badaling Expressway: Xishatun.
* Jingcheng Expressway: Gaoliying (for the time being, only heading for Laiguangying and central Beijing)

Vast distances

At distances 20 kilometres from the centre of town, the expressway covers a much larger distance than the inner ring roads. Equally large is the distance between two points.

For example, the distance between Jingtong Expressway to Jingshen Expressway is approximately 2 kilometres on the 4th Ring Road. It expands to nearly 4 kilometres on the 5th Ring Road. On the 6th Ring Road, 10 kilometres elapse from one expressway to the other -- and the Jingtong to Jingshen Expressway (on the 6th Ring Road, the Jingha to Jingshen Expressway) is one of the shortest distances between expressways in Beijing.

Anything up to "30 - 35 kilometres" can lapse between the Jingcheng Expressway and the Jingha Expressway.

For most people, travel on the 6th Ring Road is extremely rare. Although, strictly speaking, it's still on the perimeters of city limits, this is one massive ring road for a Beijinger to travel around.

List of exits

Symbols: ↗ = exit (↩ = exit present only heading clockwise, ↪ = anticlockwise); ✕ = closed exit; ⇆ = main interchange; ¥ = central toll gate; S = service area;Listed are exits heading clockwise from northwestern starting point at Xishatuan

Northern 6th Ring Road

* ✕ "Road further west (NW) blocked by portion under construction"
* ⇆ 46: "(Interchange with Badaling Expressway)" Qinghe, Changping
* ✕ 47: Beijing Higher Education Park
* ↗ 49: Baishan, Shahe
* ↗ 51: Beiyuan, Xiaotangshan, Mafang
* ⇆ 52: "(Interchange with Jingcheng Expressway)" Miyun, Laiguangying
* ↗ 53: Huoshenying, Sishang

Eastern 6th Ring Road

* ⇆ 1: "(Interchange with China National Highway 101)" Jingmi Road
* ↗ 3: Nanfaxin, Shunyi
* ↗ 4: Shunyi South Ring Road
* ↗ 6: Liqiaozhen
* ↗ 7: (↪)
* ↗ 8: Tuanli
* ⇆ 9: "(Interchange with Jingha Expressway)" Harbin, Beijing
* ↗ 10:
* ↗ 11: Tianjin, Tongzhou
* ↗ 12: (↪) Tianjin
* ⇆ 13: "(Interchange with Jingshen Expressway)" Shenyang, Beijing
* ↗ 14: Ciqu, Shibalidian
* ⇆ 15: "(Interchange with Jingjintang Expressway)" Jingjintang Expressway, Majuqiao

outhern 6th Ring Road

* ↗ 18: Langfang, Yongdingmen
* ↗ 19: (↩) Weishanzhuang
* ⇆ 20: "(Interchange with Jingkai Expressway)" Jingkai Expressway
* ↗ 23: Huangcun
* ↗ 24: Beizangcun, Lucheng
* ✕ "Gas station -- under projection"
* ↗ 26: Yaoshang, Changyang
* ↗ 27: Liangxiang, Guandao
* ⇆ 29: "(Interchange with Jingshi Expressway)"

Western 6th Ring Road

* ↗ 31: Yanshan, Liangxiang
* ✕ "Remainder of Western 6th Ring Road is under projection"