Friday's executive meeting of China's State Council in Beijing, chaired by Premier Wen Jiabao, passed in principle a plan for the construction of China's national expressway network.

Details of the plan were not disclosed, but participants said the meeting reached a decision that construction of the network must conform with China's economic and social development and take into account regional development, urban and rural development and population distribution.

"Advanced technology and materials should be used to improve construction quality and cut cost," says the decision.

It also calls on reforming the expressway management mechanism.

China's expressway construction embarked on a fast track since the 1990s. At the end of 2003, China has opened to traffic 29,700 kilometers of expressway, ranking the second in the world.

China now has expressways linking the northeast, north, east and south of the country.

Source: Xinhua