STORY: Chinese company performs "heart bypass surgery" to ease traffic jam in Iraqi capital
SHOOTING DATE: March 2, 2024 
DATELINE: March 8, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:33
LOCATION: Baghdad
CATEGORY: SOCIETY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the traffic 
2. various of the project
3. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): YANG LIN, Chief engineer of Nisour Square Development Project
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): GUO XIAOWEI, Project manager of Nisour Square Development Project

STORYLINE:

Decades of war and conflict, particularly the 2003 U.S. invasion, have left deep scars on Iraq's infrastructure, including its road network. 

In the Nisour Square at the heart of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, where the peak traffic flow reaches about 12,300 vehicles per hour, traffic congestion has long gripped commuters in the city.

Such a struggling situation is going to be changed due to the Chinese-constructed Nisour Square Development Project.

The project, undertaken by Chinese firm Transtech, includes two overpasses and five tunnels, aiming to erect a multi-tiered transportation hub designed to ease chronic congestion.

SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): YANG LIN, Chief engineer of Nisour Square Development Project
"Advanced Chinese construction techniques and standards have been introduced to address the multiple challenges and difficulties facing the construction of the Nisour Square Development Project. Upon completion, the project will significantly alleviate traffic congestion in the core areas of Baghdad and effectively reduce noise and exhaust pollution caused by traffic congestion."
  
SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): GUO XIAOWEI, Project manager of Nisour Square Development Project
"As one of the countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative, Iraq is a country with time-honored history and civilization. Massive infrastructures were destroyed during the war, and the capital city of Baghdad has suffered from traffic congestion for years. Transtech is performing a 'heart bypass' surgery in the capital city, using Chinese technology and wisdom to alleviate the traffic congestion there, and providing Chinese solutions for the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and the improvement of people's livelihood in Iraq after the war."

The project, which began in July last year, is slated for completion by January 2025.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Baghdad.
(XHTV)