Some of the major elements of Shanghai's future Bund promenade, a RMB 5 billion (US$733 million) project that will remove the traffic-choked highway and replace it with a pedestrian-friendly riverfront, will be in place as early as October.

 

The city's urban planner told Shanghai Daily yesterday that the current sightseeing areas along the Bund are being closed in phases to make way for construction. Some of the walkways and vehicle lanes between Huangpu Park and Hankou Road have been closed since early this month.

 

By October, authorities hope to complete the basic structures of the promenade between Huangpu Park and Nanjing Road E. and open them to sightseers.

 

When the project is finished, before the opening of the 2010 World Expo, the nearly two-kilometer riverside strip from the Suzhou Creek to Xinkaihe Road - the current site of Shiliupu Dock - will be turned into a pedestrian-only promenade featuring restaurants and other tourist attractions.

 

The busy highway that separates the waterfront from the historic structures to its west will be removed and replaced with an underground vehicle tunnel. Only tour buses will be allowed to travel the area in designated lanes.

 

Builders will soon dismantle some of the buildings outside the entrance to Huangpu Park to construct a grassland square. And the current Chen Yi Square honoring Shanghai's first mayor, located near the intersection with Nanjing Road, will be expanded to twice its current size, according to the urban planner.

 

Another square, designed to provide a venue for major celebrations, will be built on the Bund near Fuzhou Road and provide a prime vantage point for viewing the entire waterfront skyline.

 

In addition, a square at the Yan'an Road end of the riverfront will feature a display of Bund history.

Source: Shanghai China

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