Officials with the Communications Department of Anhui Provincial Government said that the massive investment would increase the mileage of expressways by 1,100 kilometers.

By the end of 2007, the trunk expressway network linking Hefei, capital city of Anhui province, and 16 other major cities in the province would have taken shape, said the officials.

Moreover, the officials said new expressway projects would be built, if possible, under the "build, operate, and transfer" (BOT) method in a bid to draw private investment.

Anhui province invested a combined sum of 40 billion yuan (some US$4.8 billion) in highway and expressway projects in the past five-year period from 1998 to 2002, bringing its total highway network to 68,000 kilometers, including 866 kilometers of expressways.

(eastday.com February 21, 2003)