As the first year of the 14th Five-Year Plan, all localities have planned their development path in the next five years. The "Fourteenth Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development of Yichang City and the Outline of Long-Term Goals for 2035" was finally officially announced in June. The railway part should be the most concerned by everyone, here is an excerpt from the relevant original text:

Renovate and upgrade the functions of the Yichang section of the Jiaoliu Railway, promote the construction of the Hunan high-speed railway, the Yanjiang high-speed railway, and the Shiyi high-speed railway. The Xingshan section of the Zhengwan high-speed railway and the Yichang-Zhengwan high-speed railway connecting line will be formed. Longitudinal (Xi'an, Xiangyang-Changde, Zhangjiajie) six directions (Wuhan, Xiangyang, Xi’an, Chengdu, Chongqing, Changde)", freight road network "one horizontal (Shanghai-Hanrong) and one vertical (Jiaoliu line)" regional importance Railway hub. Speed up the construction of railway freight branch lines and the combined iron and water transport system, and promote the construction of Baiyang Port, Maoping Port, Zhicheng Port, Qixingtai Port and other Shugang railways, and the renovation and upgrading of Zhicheng Station and Zhijiang Station on Jiaoliu Railway. Promote the construction of the Dangyuan railway branch line and the Yichang-Shennongjia intercity train project.

For the railway part of this plan, Yichang's expression should be very vague. The following is a brief analysis of what lines make up the high-speed rail network in Yichang with "two verticals and two horizontals", which connects to six major cities.

Two horizontal lines: North-South high-speed rail along the river, relatively easy to understand

The so-called North Yanjiang High-speed Railway in Yichang generally refers to the Wuhan-Yichang section of the Yangtze River High-speed Railway + Zhengwan High-speed Railway Xingshan Link + Zhengwan High-speed Railway. This line was originally the second step of the three-step plan for the high-speed rail along the Yangtze River in Hubei, and it is also a component of the channel along the river.

Although the entire line of the high-speed rail along the Yangtze River is accelerating, the line is too long and the progress of each section is different, so it is too early to complete the line. The Zhengzhou-Wangzhou high-speed railway is about to be completed, and construction of the Xingshan link has already started. As long as the Wuyi section of the high-speed rail along the Yangtze River is completed, Yichang's North Coastal High-speed Rail will be formed.

The South Yanjiang High-speed Railway should be referred to as the Yuyi High-speed Railway. After crossing the river in Yichang City, the Yuyi High-speed Railway connects to Enshi through Changyang, Wufeng and other places; basically, it is on the south bank of the Yangtze River. In this way, Yichang has formed a north-south combination of the Yangtze River through the main line of the high-speed rail along the Yangtze River and some of the connecting lines. However, the Nanyanjiang River is currently "unworthy of its name", mainly due to the small number of counties and cities in the route and the small population covered.

The Yu-Yi high-speed rail is to the south, while the Yichang North Station is located to the north. The high-speed rail along the river forms a huge S-bend in the urban area of Yichang. Yichang wants to realize the true south along the river. If it continues to extend eastward from Wufeng to Jingzhou, it can cover Yidu, Songzi and other places. In this way, Yichang's north-south channel along the Yangtze River is well deserved, and it is also extremely important for consolidating Yichang's status as an east-west transportation hub.

Two verticals: the expression is rather vague

The two verticals planned for Yichang are not described by specific routes, but cities (Xi'an, Xiangyang-Changde, Zhangjiajie). Although it looks vague, it is easier to understand. Because there are already three designated high-speed rail lines: Hunan high-speed rail, Yanjiang high-speed rail, and Shiyi high-speed rail. The Xiang-Chang high-speed railway is an important part of Hunan. According to the pre-feasibility study plan, it is the Yichang and Shimen routes. Therefore, the Xiang-Chang high-speed railway is one of them.

So the other one should be the Xi'an-Zhangjiajie high-speed railway. There is no such wording at the national level. It is a piece of several lines, and the Shiyi high-speed railway is a part of it.

According to the latest railway planning and construction methods, there are strict standards for high-speed railways. If Shiyi wants to build according to high-speed rail standards, it must become the main line to connect to the big city. Construction of the West Ten High-speed Railway is about to start, together with the Yichang-Shimen Railway and the Shizhang High-speed Railway planned by Hunan; this will form the Xi'an-Shiyan-Yichang-Zhangjiajie vertical high-speed railway line.

Using Zhang Jihuai, which is about to be built in Hunan, can strive to be included in the Baohai high-speed rail channel, so that the construction of Shiyan-Yichang in accordance with high-speed rail standards is possible. Speaking clearly of "two verticals and two horizontals", Yichang's six-way high-speed rail is actually very clear. Xiangyang and Changde refer to the two directions of Xiang-Chang high-speed railway. Wuhan represents the eastward direction of high-speed railway along the Yangtze River; Xi'an is the connection between Shiyi high-speed railway and West Ten high-speed railway. In the direction of Chengdu, Yichang is mainly connected to Chongqing Wanzhou through Zhengzhou-Wanzhou high-speed rail and connecting lines; Chengdu-Dalian high-speed rail is being used to connect to Chengdu. The direction of Chongqing is to rely on the Yuyi high-speed rail to connect to Chongqing. There are not many new lines here, and most of them are collinear. For example, the Shiyi high-speed rail and the North Yanjiang high-speed rail are on the same line; the Yichang high-speed rail from east to Wufeng is a common line of three high-speed rails: Yuyi, Xi'an to Zhangjiajie, and Yichang to Shimen.

There is no dispute about the high-speed railway along the Yangtze River and the Zhengzhou-Wanzhou high-speed railway. The Shiyi high-speed rail is more difficult, and the Baohai high-speed rail is relatively mature. Zhangjiajie, Hunan wants to strive to incorporate the Zhangjihuai high-speed rail into the Baohai high-speed rail and become the eastern route plan. However, Hunan and Shaanxi on the eastern route have ready-made routes, and the pressure is all concentrated in the two cities of Yichang and Shiyan in Hubei. Hubei's 14th Five-Year High-speed Rail Planning Network did not mention Shiyi, and it is difficult to obtain support at the provincial level, and the national level is not urgent. It is a long-term and arduous goal for Yichang to realize a "two vertical and two horizontal" high-speed rail network with six directions. Editor/Xu Shengpeng