Area preparing for self-driving cars

The 100-kilometer freeway will be open to two-way traffic, with two of the eight lanes specially designed for autonomous vehicles, Beijing Daily reported, quoting Beijing Capital Highway Development Group Co.

Construction on the project will start this year and will include intelligent road infrastructure and smart-toll facilities.

The speed limit on the freeway ranges from 100 kilometers per hour to 120 km/h.

"It will be the most convenient freeway between Beijing and Xiongan," Zhou Xiaohong, deputy head of the group's department of technology and planning, was quoted as saying by Beijing Daily.

An intelligent infrastructure system can acquire vehicle and road information through wireless communication and internet technology, improving transport efficiency and safety.

An outline for Xiongan New Area, approved by the central government and released in April 2018, lists four north-south freeways and three east-west expressways will be built linking Xiongan with surrounding cities, including Beijing, Tianjin and cities in Hebei.

When the Beijing-Xiongan freeway is complete, travel time from the capital to Xiongan will be cut to one hour from the current two and a half hours, according to the outline.