Heading to Beijing Capital International Airport late at night over the next few months?
It may be worth leaving a little earlier.
A major upgrade of the Capital Airport Expressway will begin at 11pm on Friday, August 21, with main construction expected to wrap up before the end of December.
Image via Pexels
The 18.4-kilometer expressway linking the East Third Ring Road with Capital Airport is getting improvements to its road surface, traffic capacity, landscaping and smart traffic systems.
For travelers, however, the construction schedule is the part worth noting.
Most work will take place between 11pm and 5am, when three lanes may be occupied for construction while one remains open.
Normal traffic will generally resume during the day.
Image via Pexels
Some resurfacing and bridge works will require temporary full closures.
One area to watch is Siyuan Bridge, where some ramps will close completely over three weekends: August 29–30, September 5–6 and September 12–13.
Work at Tianzhu Toll Station will run from August 21 to October 9, with four to five of its 15 lanes occupied at a time during phased construction.
Map generated by AI for reference
Alternative routes to the airport include Jingmi Road/Jingmi Expressway, Jingping Expressway, the Second Airport Expressway, or the Capital Airport Expressway’s auxiliary road, depending on closures and traffic conditions.
The upgrade itself goes well beyond fresh asphalt.
Around 720,000 square meters of roadway will be repaired, 83 smart sensing points will be installed, and more than 220,000 square meters of roadside landscaping will be upgraded, including climbing roses, elevated flower boxes, and smart irrigation.
In other words, Beijing’s familiar airport drive should eventually become smoother, smarter and considerably greener.
Until then, anyone catching a red-eye or arriving after midnight should check live traffic conditions before setting off.
[Cover image via Pexels]
