Circle, Hangzhou metropolitan area
A while ago, at the 13th meeting of the 14th Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Hangzhou City, the mid-term evaluation report on the implementation of the 14th Five Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development and the 2035 Long Range Objectives of Hangzhou City was released. It was pointed out that the main tasks proposed in the 14th Five Year Plan were progressing smoothly, and it was mentioned that "the Hangzhou metropolitan area plan has been approved by the state, and the centripetal force of the metropolitan area continues to gather.". The Evaluation Report also points out that the Hangzhou metropolitan area has a trend of being siphoned off by the Shanghai metropolitan area, while the Ningbo metropolitan area, Wenzhou metropolitan area, and Jinyi metropolitan area are worried about catching up. To maintain the advantageous position in regional competition, double efforts are needed.
In February 2021, the National Development and Reform Commission approved the development plan for the Nanjing metropolitan area. The members of the Nanjing metropolitan area include Nanjing, Zhenjiang, Yangzhou, Huai'an, Ma'anshan, Chuzhou, Wuhu, Xuancheng, and Liyang and Jintan in Changzhou, including 33 municipal districts, 11 county-level cities, and 16 counties. It is a cross provincial metropolitan area. According to the internal planning, Hangzhou Metropolitan Circle will include six cities in Zhejiang Province, namely Hangzhou, Huzhou, Jiaxing, Shaoxing, Quzhou and Mount Huangshan. It may also be a trans provincial metropolitan circle. The embryonic form of the Hangzhou metropolitan area can be traced back to the first mayoral joint meeting of the Hangzhou metropolitan area held in May 2007. Initially, there were only four cities: Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Huzhou, and Shaoxing, commonly known as Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Huzhou, and Shaoxing. In recent years, these four cities have made many attempts in terms of transportation infrastructure interconnection, education and medical care sharing. Hangzhou Metro has been seamlessly connected with Shaoxing Metro. Shaoxing Zhuji, Jiaxing Haining, Huzhou Deqing and other places have or will have inter city railways to Hangzhou... At the ninth joint meeting of mayors held in 2018, the Hangzhou metropolitan area was further expanded, and Quzhou and Mount Huangshan joined the Hangzhou metropolitan area; At the 11th Joint Conference of Mayors held in 2020, Xuancheng became an observer city for the Hangzhou Metropolitan Area Cooperation and Development Coordination Committee. The specific plan for the Hangzhou metropolitan area has not been announced yet, but if approved as a national level metropolitan area, it will undoubtedly bring development opportunities to Hangzhou. The most direct benefit is to strengthen the interconnectivity and mutual recognition among cities within the metropolitan area. The promotion of cross city subways, inter provincial intercity railways, mutual recognition of household registration years within urban agglomerations, the "enclave economy" within urban agglomerations, and the expansion of strong central cities all rely on the implementation of urban agglomeration planning. The radiation range and driving effect of the Hangzhou metropolitan area are stronger, and Hangzhou can further enhance its urban level through this. With the new progress in the planning of the Hangzhou metropolitan area, more intercity railways and even intercity rail transit will become possible. Transportation infrastructure is relatively easy to see, and there are more hidden benefits in urban areas, such as co building industrial parks and science and technology innovation "enclaves" between cities within the urban area. In addition, the flow of economic information such as talent will also be more accessible, which is a development opportunity for Hangzhou and its surrounding cities.
