Labels:text | font | screenshot | black and white | document OCR: Roads and rail have been extended since 1949 to provide a basic national network. The aim now is to modernize and expand the transportation system to support the push for economic growth. Additions to the railroad system - all provinces but Tibet are connected to the system - have been concentrated in the west. However, the railroads, especially in the east, are still badly congested. The priority is to develop new lines, and to double-track and electrify the main routes from Beijing to Shanghai and Guangzhou, and between Zhejiang and Hunan provinces. In 1992, a rail link with Kazakhstan was reopened. The leading ports, including Shanghai and Tianjin, are being steadily improved and the congestion problems of the 1980s have eased. Hong Kong has the best natural harbor and handles 40% of China's exports. The inland waterway system, which was allowed to fall into a state of disrepair, is now being upgraded. Water transport now accounts for about 33% of internal freight traffic. The Chang Jiang is navigable by ships of over 1,000 tons for more than 600 miles from the coast. Many small airlines have sprung up since the state monopoly ended in 1988. Air transportation is growing rapidly, like private car ownership, as wealth increases. However, the bicycle is still the ubiquitous mode of personal transportation in China.
