The entrance to Beijing Tongzhou Railway Station stands out with its modern design.

As a major infrastructure project to support the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and a key gateway, Beijing Tongzhou Railway Station, located in the Beijing Municipal Administrative Center complex transport hub, was put into operation on Tuesday.

Currently, it transports passengers from Tangshan and Qinhuangdao cities in Hebei province, Beichen district of Tianjin and some areas surrounding Beijing such as Xianghe, Dachang and Yanjiao. In the future, the station will adjust capacity more accurately based on real travel demands.

The new station roof is named "Jingfan" because its shape resembles the sail of a ship, embodying the idea of sailing afar. Adopting a transparent ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene membrane structure, the roof provides ample natural lighting throughout the station.

The M1 underground mezzanine of the station is mainly a bus terminal with supporting facilities. It has a bus terminal on the west side and a terminal for tourist coaches on the east side. The B1 floor integrates station entry functions and urban functions with public spaces such as a commercial pedestrian street and a sunken plaza.

B2 serves as a transportation transfer floor, combining waiting and urban transfer. B3 is the intercity railway platform floor, mainly undertaking the functions of intercity railway stations and subway transit platforms.

The station plaza, transfer corridors, parking facilities and some supporting commercial facilities were put into use simultaneously. Passengers can transfer to Beijing Subway Line 6, taxis, online car-hailing services and buses. In the future, the station will be connected to subway lines 22 (Pinggu Line) and M101.

Zhao Yinming, an official from the Beijing Major Railway Station Areas Administration, said that the most prominent feature of the Beijing MC complex transport hub is the merging of station and city. It integrates railway, rail transit, bus transfer and other functions. This allows passengers to achieve fast entry and exit transfers and experience convenient urban living services.

With an underground construction area of 1.28 million square meters, the construction of this transport hub started in November 2019. In the future, it will take 15 minutes to reach Beijing Capital International Airport, 35 minutes to reach Beijing Daxing International Airport or Tangshan city, and one hour to reach Xiong'an New Area in Hebei province from here.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), the transportation network connecting the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region has been continuously improved, and a number of important projects have been completed and put into operation.

On Dec 17, at a news conference held by the information office of the Beijing municipal government, Zhou Hao, an official from Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform, said that the main structures of all 19 stations on Beijing Subway Line 22, or Pinggu Line, have been capped.

As Beijing's first cross-provincial subway line, it has a total length of about 81.82 kilometers. It passes through Chaoyang, Tongzhou and Pinggu districts of Beijing, Sanhe city in Hebei province and other areas. After the line is opened, the driving effect of Beijing MC on surrounding counties in Langfang, Hebei, will be enhanced. The travel efficiency of cross-provincial commuters will also be greatly improved.

From having only one line — the Batong Line — in 2003 to the current five lines including Subway Line 6, Line 7, Line 17 and Yizhuang Line, the commuting layout of Beijing MC has achieved leapfrog expansion and will continue in the future.