Xingyi Ring Expressway, Qianxinan Prefecture, Guizhou Province

Project Overview:

The Xingyi Ring Expressway in Qianxinan Prefecture, Guizhou Province, was completed and opened to traffic in March 2021. The highway has a total length of 62.5 kilometers, with a total estimated investment of approximately 10.2 billion yuan. This project is not only a “zero-waste” green highway that the Guizhou Provincial Department of Transport is promoting nationwide, but also a pilot demonstration project for green construction technology on expressways in Guizhou’s karst rocky desertification areas. Additionally, it was designated as a science and technology demonstration project by the Ministry of Transport in 2021. Adhering to the principle of using green design to guide the entire lifecycle of the expressway’s construction, the project successfully overcame numerous challenges, including significant topographic variations in the karst landscape, numerous crossings of different landform units, a high bridge-to-tunnel ratio, dense concentrations of scenic areas and national nature reserves, an ecologically sensitive environment with stringent environmental protection requirements, and a high level of urbanization along the route coupled with a dense network of interchanges. As a result, the project has achieved remarkable outcomes.

Project Highlights:

Adhering to the principle of “ecologically sound route selection,” the alignment fully follows the natural terrain, maximizing preservation of the original landforms and creating a green highway that fosters harmonious coexistence between humans and nature, thereby safeguarding the ecological environment along the route. For areas inhabited by ethnic minority groups, we adopt a low-bridge construction approach to cross these regions, putting into practice the philosophy of “giving land back to the people” and minimizing the encroachment on local residents’ living and production spaces.
Zero waste disposal, zero borrow areas—saving 612,000 square meters of land; a 100% recovery rate for topsoil, with approximately 310,000 cubic meters of topsoil recycled along the entire project route, reducing permanent land occupation by 5,994 square meters, thus achieving a win-win situation for both environmental protection and economic benefits.
The high-cut embankment sections have been converted into short tunnels, saving 131 acres of land. Through route optimization and the adoption of a subgrade-plus-tunnel solution along the foot of the mountain, 180 acres of basic farmland have been conserved. In the central median and service area greenery maintenance, drip irrigation automation control technology has been implemented, reducing water consumption by more than 80% and cutting down on post-maintenance management labor hours by over 90%.
The Fenglin Bridge—the first large-span steel-concrete composite girder suspension bridge built in a mountainous region—has a total length of 1,163 meters. Its main span is designed as a 550-meter suspension bridge, and the bridge deck rises to a vertical height of 364.2 meters above the valley floor, filling a technological gap in the construction of large-span steel-concrete composite girder suspension bridges in mountainous areas.

Honored Achievements:

Global Road Achievement Award (GRAA) – Environmental Protection Category Prize
First Prize for Outstanding Design in China’s Highway Transportation
First Prize, Guizhou Province Outstanding Survey and Design Award;
China Highway Society Transportation BIM Engineering Innovation Award;
The second batch of Green Construction Demonstration Projects in Guizhou Province, organized by the Guizhou Provincial Construction Association;
Held 14 patents and published 14 papers;

Case Study: