The recently released Beijing 15th Five-Year Plan for a Modern Comprehensive Transportation System sets a target of more than 1,050 kilometers of urban rail transit operating mileage by 2030.
At the end of 2025, the city's rail transit operating mileage had already reached 909 kilometers, which means more than 140 kilometers of new operating mileage will be added during the 15th Five-Year Plan period.
How will this goal be achieved?
First, lines already under construction will be completed in succession, and several new rail transit lines will meet the public. According to the plan, over the five-year period Beijing will complete the rail transit CBD Line, the Line 13 capacity expansion and upgrade project, the Line 1 branch line, the remaining section of Phase I of Line 3, and the northern extension of the Daxing Airport Express.
At the same time, construction of Phase I of rail transit Line M101 will be advanced, and preliminary work for Phase I of rail transit Line M102 and other projects will be pushed forward.
These lines are all projects in Beijing's third-phase urban rail transit construction plan.
The Line 1 branch line project runs from Qinglonghu East Station in the south to Bajiao Amusement Park Station in the north, with a total length of 21 kilometers. Once completed, it will drive high-quality development in central Shijingshan District and the Fengtai area.
Phase I of Line M101 is a backbone rail transit line directly serving the entire area of the city sub-center, with a total length of about 18.1 kilometers, all underground, and a total of 14 stations, including 6 transfer stations.
The CBD Line and the Line 13 capacity expansion and upgrade project will also be completed during the 15th Five-Year Plan period.
While building new rail lines, existing rail lines will also run faster and transfers will become smoother. The plan makes clear that in optimizing the existing rail network, Beijing will implement the Yizhuang Line-Line 5-Line 10 connecting line, add a station at the Taihu Depot on the Yizhuang Line, and add a station at the New China International Exhibition Center Phase II on Line 15, while deepening research on plans such as extending Line 8 east to the Children's Hospital and extending the Line 19 branch line north to the North Courtyard of the Palace Museum.
Beijing will push for speed increases on lines such as the Changping Line and Line 15, and dynamically optimize operations organization on lines such as Line 10, Line 4, Line 6, and Line 16. It will also improve transfer conditions at stations such as Guomao Station and Songjiazhuang Station. Escalators and elevators will be added at stations such as Tiananmen West Station, Tiananmen East Station, and Chegongzhuang Station.
Regarding the eastward extension of Line 8 to the Children's Hospital, in January last year the Beijing Municipal Development and Reform Commission approved the project proposal for the new campus construction project of Beijing Children's Hospital. It noted that the east side of the new campus also reserves an underground interface to connect with the planned rail transit Line 8, Line S6, and the commercial complex on the east side.
However, the specific alignment and station layout of this line have not yet been finalized and remain in the preliminary research and demonstration stage.
As for the widely watched northward extension of the Line 19 branch line to the North Courtyard of the Palace Museum, the plan is also still in the research stage.
In addition to adding capacity and improving the existing network, station-city integration is also an important change for rail transit during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. The plan makes clear that integrated construction of rail station projects such as Guomao Station, Huoying Station, and the Lize city terminal will be completed.
It will create rail micro-centers such as Dongdaqiao Station, Tongzhou West Station, and Longze West Station, and open rail stations such as Hongmiao Station and Tongyungmen Station.
This means that commercial and other public services will be added around stations, making commuting itself part of the city's vitality.
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