On 27 November, Liu Zhicheng, General Manager of Guangzhou Metro, delivered a keynote speech titled “Innovation-Driven and Tech-Empowered, Metro of the New Era Promotes New Progress in City” at the Technology Innovation and Smart City Forum of the Asia Youth Leaders Forum 2021.

The full speech is as below.

Dear leaders and distinguished guests,

Good afternoon! I'm very honored to be with you at the Asia Youth Leaders Forum to discuss economic and social development. According to the conference agenda, I will talk about the innovative development of Guangzhou’s rail transit in the new era. The title of my speech is Innovation-Driven and Tech-Empowered, Metro of the New Era Promotes New Progress in City. 

I would like to take this opportunity to briefly share what we do at Guangzhou Metro. Currently, Guangzhou Metro has an asset of 500 billion yuan. The rail transit mileage operated by Guangzhou Metro is 745 kilometers. Among them, local subway network accounts for a total of 590 kilometers. Pakistan's first subway line is also operated by Guangzhou Metro. There are 12 lines totaling 273 kilometers under construction. Now, I will make a brief presentation in three aspects.

First, the new era has given us a new mission. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, when inspecting the development of rail transit in Beijing, that urban rail transit is the future of modern metropolitan transportation. Developing rail transit is an effective way to solve the problems in big cities and build green and smart cities. "The Outline for Building China’s Strength in Transport" and "National Comprehensive Three-Dimensional Transportation Network Planning Outline" also proposed that we fully understand the importance of transportation, highlight the key role of innovation, and focus on innovation-driven and intelligent development of transportation. It can be said that accelerating the innovation-driven development of rail transit is of great significance to promote the construction of smart cities, optimize the distributions of urban functions, and improve the quality of life. Since its initiation, Guangzhou Metro has adhered to Guangdong's pioneering spirit and undertaken the mission of speeding up the development of Guangzhou. The main equipment of Line 1 relied on import. Line 2 was the first line in China with more than 70% of electromechanical equipment produced by China. In addition, Line 2 won the second prize of the National Science Progress Award. Line 7 used a domestic train signal system with completely independent intellectual property rights for the first time, filling the domestic technological gap. Today, we are actively exploring how to construct smart subways. We have developed an upgradeable smart rail transit operating system "Suiteng OS", and after three years, Guangzhou Metro and Tencent have developed version 2.0. It can be said that we have never stopped on the road of independent innovation. After entering the new era, Guangzhou Metro will take the initiative to speed up its trains and lead the development of the industry, with the mission of connecting the Greater Bay Area through rails. Led by technological innovation, we strive to become a comprehensive rail-transit service provider with high quality in China. We will leverage capital to become a state-owned capital investment company in rail transit with a scientific governance system and an advanced business model.

Second, the new mission requires new development. To assist Guangzhou to build a leading city with Chinese characteristics, Guangzhou Metro will actively implement the strategy of building China’s strength in transportation, support the high-quality development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Besides, we will try to lead the scientific and technological progress of rail transit, enabling happy rides for citizens, and build a "four-type" subway system. The first is to build a service-oriented rail transit system, with people at its center and accelerating the pace of rail transit construction. By 2025, the total mileage of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area operated by Guangzhou Metro is expected to exceed 2,000 kilometers, including subways, trams, and intercity rail transit. Intercity rail transit crosses the boundaries of Guangzhou. We optimize the service quality in the entire travel chain and provide citizens with safer, smarter, more convenient, low-carbon, and environmentally-friendly rail-transit services. Secondly, we will create a leading rail transit system. With the best technical and economic indicators and first-class standards and specifications, the overall advancement of the network can be maintained. Based on safety, we implement strategies driven by innovation, talent, and culture to build a comprehensive rail-transit enterprise with outstanding professionalism, innovation capabilities, brand influence, and competitiveness. The third is to build an integrated rail transit system. Efforts will be made to further connect rail transit and urban life services, combine rail-transit planning and construction with urban renewal, and integrate rail-transit development and urban agglomeration in the Greater Bay Area. We will turn rail transit into a considerable force for shaping urban forms, and it will create a high-quality living circle that is livable and suitable for businesses and travels, thus improving the quality of life. The fourth is to build a sustainable rail transit system. With the help of capital, innovations in the industry, and integration of product partners and other resources in the market, we will boost the development of rail transit and property management, creating an urban rail transit industry ecosystem and enhancing rail transit's sustainability. 

Third, new development calls for new commitments. On the one hand, sustainable and high-quality development requires a vigorous spirit of innovation; on the other hand, it requires a pragmatic work style. We need to build smart subways and smart cities with pragmatic attitude. The first is to accelerate the construction of innovation platforms and further strengthen the integration of innovative technologies, capital, and markets. We combine the characteristics of Guangzhou's rail transit industry and focus on the innovation needs for new intelligent rail-transit vehicles, intelligent operation and maintenance system, new materials, new equipment, etc. Thus, we could create a common technology research and development platform, open up a path for the development of scientific and technological innovation projects, and provide the environment and foundation for industrialization-ready scientific research and innovation projects. The second is to promote digital innovation and implementation. We promote the intelligent and digital transformation of Guangzhou Metro and coordinate the application of various fields of technologies and the digitalization process of each business. We will also cooperate with first-class domestic partners, and complete top-level design that meets the needs of the digital transformation of various businesses for Guangzhou Metro. With digitization, networks, and intelligence as the direction, we strive to build smart equipment systems and smart urban rails. It includes three aspects specifically. Smart manufacturing is to achieve technological prosperity, technological efficiency improvement, and green construction by means of prefabricated construction technology. Smart travelling is to achieve intelligent, precise, and personalized services by accelerating automatic operation, regional intermodal transportation, smart security inspection, and senseless payment technology to better meet the travel needs of the people. Smart maintenance is to make good use of technologies such as cloud platforms, Internet of Things, and big data to continuously improve the efficiency of operation and maintenance and optimize cost structure. The third is to conduct high-quality rail-transit planning and construction and consider current and future development. On the basis of finishing existing lines under construction, we should contemplate lines in planning. We need to implement precise policies and meticulous management, do the current things right, make quality products, produce good results, and form standards. At the same time, we need a vision to consider laying a foundation for future development and strengthen the linkage between planning and design, construction, operation, and other stages in the development process. Based on this, we will create good operating conditions for future operations and provide sufficient space for subsequent upgrades. The fourth is to deliver high-quality rail-transit services and scenarios. We continue to promote the transformation of Guangzhou Metro from a service-oriented transportation company to a comprehensive urban service company, so as to consolidate the business model of metro plus property management. We take advantage of the new round of planning and the opportunity of multi-intelligence integration to promote the upgrade and development of the business of property ownership operations. On the basis of high-quality operation, we will form a diversified rail-transit living circle, enhance the planning and development capabilities of property management companies along the rails, and create world-class complexes and hubs, in order to become a leader in quality urban life in the rail transit industry. The fifth is to vigorously promote the advance of the rail transit industry and the modernization of the industry chain. With smart clustering as the main line of development, we will build a whole industry cluster including investment, planning and design, construction, equipment manufacturing, operation maintenance, and value-added services. It will help form a "1+N" supply chain system that is driven by a leading company and supported by a number of key enterprises and promote the industry development of a new and high-quality pattern which has leading industry chains, the strongest key links, and the strongest atmosphere of innovation. We need to accelerate the creation of advantageous emerging industries in the city, shape a world-class rail-transit brand, and enhance the supporting role for Guangzhou to realize the "new vitality of an old city" and the "four new breakthroughs".

The future is here. Technology is the wings of human civilization. I believe that with science and technology, rail transit will continue to promote economic, cultural, social, political, and ecological progress. As a member of the rail transit industry, Guangzhou Metro will soar in a broader sky of innovation. Through demonstration projects, we will continue to pursue innovation and promote technological breakthroughs and high-quality development of rail transit with greater confidence and firmer beliefs, so as to contribute greater and newer power to the construction of smart cities and the happy life of the people. 

Thank you!