Shanghai and 13 neighboring cities in the Yangtze River Delta region have jointly drafted a territorial and spatial development plan for the Greater Shanghai Metropolitan Area, charting the path for deeper regional integration in the next decade.

Spearheaded by Shanghai, the Greater Shanghai Metropolitan Area covers Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou, Nantong, Yancheng, and Taizhou in Jiangsu province; Hangzhou, Ningbo, Huzhou, Jiaxing, Shaoxing, and Zhoushan in Zhejiang province; and Xuancheng in Anhui province.

The 14 cities share close links in economy, industrial development and transportation.

The blueprint outlines a spatial structure anchored by Shanghai and supported by four surrounding zones: an eastern maritime zone, the western Taihu Lake area, the southern Hangzhou Bay area, and the northern Yangtze River estuary.

A multi-tiered network is also proposed to enhance commuting efficiency, and industrial cooperation. The framework is built around three concentric circles:

• A commuting circle within approximately 100 kilometers from Shanghai's main urban center, focusing on addressing commuting needs and improving the connectivity of transportation.
• A functional integration circle within roughly 200 kilometers from Shanghai's main urban center, supported by a one-hour transportation radius, strengthens the integration of regional industry, innovation, supply, and talent chains to jointly promote the coordinated development of areas such as the Yangtze River estuary, Hangzhou Bay, Taihu Lake, and the East China Sea.
• An industrial collaboration circle extending to around 300 kilometers from Shanghai's main urban center, enhancing industrial linkages within the Greater Shanghai Metropolitan Area and between it and other metropolitan clusters across the YRD.

The plan calls for an integrated transportation network, aiming to create 30-, 60-, and 90-minute commuting circles. It also aims to improve the inland trunk waterway network and promote the planning and construction of inter-river and trans-sea links, along with the digital transformation of highways.

In addition, the blueprint highlights ecological conservation, cultural development, and security coordination, promoting deeper integration across the broader YRD region.

The draft plan underscores cross-regional collaboration and proposes the establishment of five designated cooperation zones.

These zones are designed to break down administrative barriers between Shanghai and its neighboring provinces to advance coordinated industrial planning, infrastructure development, and environmental governance.

One of the cooperation zones is the Jiading-Kunshan-Taicang coordination zone, which will focus on joint development in emerging sectors such as new energy vehicles, aerospace, life sciences, next-generation electronic information, and intelligent equipment manufacturing.

Sources: Jiefang Daily, Wenhui Daily