The Puyan Expressway. [Photo provided to gojilin.gov.cn]

The opening ceremony for the Puyan Expressway (from Dapuchaihe to Yantong Mountain) was held in Huadian, Northeast China's Jilin province, on Nov 30. This marks the end of Huadian's history of being without an expressway and ushers the city into the "era of high speed."

The Puyan to Huadian section is located in the eastern part of Jilin province and is an essential infrastructure project. The Puyan to Huadian section is a convenient transportation artery from central-western Jilin province to the Changbai Mountains. It also acts as a crucial traffic link connecting the eastern region of Jilin province to the Yanbian Korean autonomous prefecture and the Hunchun Port.

The Puyan Expressway connects across the terrains. [Photo provided to gojilin.gov.cn]

The Puyan to Huadian section of the expressway spans 115.8 kilometers with four lanes in each direction and a total investment of 10.3 billion yuan ($1.44 billion).

Originally planned for completion in four years, the Puyan to Huadian section opened to traffic one year ahead of schedule. With the completion of this expressway, the travel distance and time between Huadian and various tourist attractions along the route have been significantly reduced, thereby promoting the formation of a golden tourism belt in eastern Jilin.

Once the entire extension of the expressway is open, the travel time from Huadian to Changchun will be cut from over three hours to just one and a half hours.