Dear PES members,
It is very exciting for us that the ICPT (International Conference on Road and Airfield Pavement Technology) will not only return to Beijing after 25 years since 1998, but will also reconvene face-to-face as the first major event and platform in Asia for road and airfield pavement researchers, engineers and government officials from around the world after 3 years of pandemic.
As PES Council already knows that many of us have registered or will attend the 13th ICPT 2023 in Beijing from July 6-8, to enrich this trip in Beijing, PES is organising an additional pre-conference technical day tour to visit the Xiong’an New Area. The details can be found below.
Date: 5 Jul 2023, Wednesday (starts at 7:30am)
Cost: PES will subsidize the pre-conference technical day tour expenses (transport, meal, and one night accommodation on 4 Jul 2023) up to a total amount of S$2,000 for participants who are PES members. Should the total expenses exceed S$2,000, the balance will be shared equally.
PES participants will book their own accommodation for 4 Jul 23 night either at the Conference hotel or equivalent with the maximum amount of 500 RMB claimable per participant with receipt through PES.
Eligibility: PES Members* attending the ICPT 2023 Conference.
* Non-PES members are welcome to join, subject to approval by the Delegation Chair. Non-PES members shall pay for all their expenses incurred.
Team: This tour is led by:
- Mr Tan Hua Soon, PES Delegate Chairperson;
- Mr Jia Lu, Technical Tour Leader; and
- Mr Daniel Tan, Technical Tour Secretary.
Sign-up by 10 Jun 2023:
Please register your attendance here:
Tentative Programme (subject to changes):
7:30 Â Â Departure from hotel
8:30Â Â Â Beijing South Railway Station, high speed train: Beijing to XiongXian
9:30Â Â Â Visit to Xiong’an New Area
          Xiong’an Planning Exhibition Hall
         Xiong’an Expressway Visual Application Management Center
         Xiong’an Expressway with advanced CRMB modification technology (CRMB more than 60%)
12:30Â Lunch
14:30Â Seminar and discussion session with local road engineering team
17:30Â Xiongxian back to Beijing high speed railroad
18:00Â Back to the hotel
(*The tour timing may be subjected to changes)
About Xiong’an New Area:
On April 1, 2017, China announced plans to create the Xiong’an New Area, a new economic zone about 100 kilometers southwest of Beijing. The new area covers Xiongxian, Rongcheng, and Anxin counties in Hebei and is home to Baiyangdian, an important wetland in northern China. The Xiong’an New Area will initially cover about 100 square kilometers, expanding to 200 square kilometers in the medium term and about 2,000 square kilometers in the long term, with a population of 2 to 2.5 million people.
The area will act as a new growth pole for the country’s economy and will also aim to curb urban sprawl, bridge growth gaps and protect ecology. Never before has there been a special zone with such comprehensive development value. It is significant because coordinated and sustainable growth is so important to the country.
Located about 100 km southwest of downtown Beijing, the area will house facilities unrelated to the capital that have been relocated from Beijing, where the city’s breakneck growth has led to “urban ills” such as traffic congestion and air pollution.
After the new area takes shape, Beijing will focus on serving as the nation’s capital and alleviating increasing population and pollution problems. The area will boost the economy in the region around the capital, where Beijing’s wealth and prominence have yet to spread.