Pinglu Canal in China Nears Navigation Opening, with "Dedicated Traffic Rules" Taking Effect on September 15

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 10, the Information Office of the People's Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region held a press conference, announcing that the "Pinglu Canal Navigation Safety Management Regulations" will take effect on September 15, one day ahead of the Pinglu Canal's official opening to navigation on September 16. The regulations establish dedicated rules covering the river-sea boundary, vessel admission, navigation order, and special water area control, targeting the Pinglu Canal's navigation conditions such as its river-sea interface, complex vessel types, and concentrated bends, bridges, and ship locks.

The Pinglu Canal has a total length of 134.2 kilometers and is built to the standard of a Class I inland waterway, capable of accommodating 5,000-tonne vessels. It starts from the Pingtang River mouth in Hengzhou City, Guangxi in the north, passes through Luwu Town, Lingshan County, Qinzhou City, and follows the Qinjiang River into the Beibu Gulf. Guangxi had previously confirmed that the canal would officially open to navigation on September 16.

The regulations designate the G75 Lanhai Expressway Qinjiang Bridge as the river-sea boundary. Waters above the bridge are managed under inland waterway rules, while waters below the bridge connect to the maritime navigation management system. For cross-water navigation scenarios involving inland vessels entering sea areas and sea-going vessels entering the canal, the regulations separately set requirements for vessel seaworthiness and navigation conditions, and specify requirements for traffic separation, vessel encounters, and avoidance methods under different current conditions.

For key water areas of the Pinglu Canal such as bends, bridge zones, and ship locks, the regulations further quantify parameter requirements including safe vessel speed, safe distance, under-keel clearance, and bridge clearance, and incorporate hydrometeorological conditions such as wind, waves, flow velocity, and visibility into navigation control. Six categories of behavior are prohibited, including parallel navigation, grounding on slopes for mooring, and overtaking or drifting in curved sections.

The Pinglu Canal had previously established an operation and management system covering waterways, ship locks, bridges, and waterborne service facilities. The "Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Pinglu Canal Protection and Management Regulations" specify that operating entities must publish information including navigation structure operating conditions, navigable clear height of cross-river bridges, vessel principal dimension limits, navigation control, and waterway hydrology, and must dynamically monitor flow rate and velocity, vessel passage, and ship lock operating status.

The Pinglu Canal passed completion acceptance on August 28. The acceptance scope covered waterways, navigation hubs, and waterborne service areas. Three double-line ship locks, the main waterway, and related supporting facilities are now ready for delivery. After the safety management regulations take effect on September 15, the canal will officially enter the navigation operation phase the following day.