Beijing-Yuxian Expressway opens to traffic

The Beijing-Yuxian Expressway, a trunk line western of the Chinese capital, opened to traffic on Monday. Starting from Mentougou District of Beijing and ending at Nuanquan Town of Yuxian County, north China's Hebei Province, the 184-kilometer expressway connects with the Hunyuan-Guangling Expressway in north China's Shanxi Province.

It is the only highway to Hebei in the west direction of Beijing.

The opening of the expressway reduces road travel time between Beijing's west sixth ring road and Yuxian County of Zhangjiakou City from three hours to two hours, and that between Beijing and Zhuolu County, also in Zhangjiakou City, to one hour.

"The opening of the Beijing-Yuxian Expressway will ease the traffic pressure in both the northwest and the southwest directions of Beijing," said Zhang Xiaojun, deputy director of the Engineering Coordination Office under the Beijing Municipal Commission of Transport.

Passing through ecological conservation areas and protection zones of ancient trees, the expressway had to surmount tremendous difficulties in construction.

And tunnels and bridges accounted for 88 percent of the total length, with two tunnel clusters each stretching 10 km in length, making them rare large-span highway tunnel clusters in north China.

"This project realized uniform planning, synchronized construction and simultaneous opening at different sections, forging a typical case of coordinated development in the trans-province highway construction across the country," said Wang Yueqiang, deputy director of the Comprehensive Planning Division under the Hebei Provincial Department of Transportation.

Beijing-Yuxian Expressway opens to traffic

Protesters took to the streets of the Venezuelan capital Caracas on Wednesday, urging the United States to release Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.

The U.S. launched a military strike on Venezuela on Jan. 3, forcibly taking the South American country's president and his wife and placing them in custody in New York, an action that has drawn worldwide condemnation and concern.

"We insist on taking to the streets. All social movements and all political forces are defending the homeland. We will continue protesting and demand that the U.S. empire return our commander, our president," said protester Roni Campero.

"Everyone here voted for Maduro. We want him to return home safely," said protester Esperanza Olavarria.

The demonstrators said they believe U.S. efforts to destabilize the country will fail.

"The United States wants a civil war to happen here, but it hasn't succeeded. We are still standing firm and will continue fighting to the end," said protester Maria Hinojosa.

Venezuelans rally in Caracas, demand US release President Maduro