"The journey from Nanning to Singapore would only take a day or two if modern roads and a railway could be completed,” said head of the Guangxi Academy of Social Sciences Lu Yusheng.

Lu introduced his research findings on the Nanning-Singapore Corridor at the Forum on China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (FOCAFTA) in Nanning, January 7-8.

The Nanning-Singapore Corridor is a hypothetical line extending from Nanning, the capital city of the Guangxi Autonomous Region in southeast China, and going through Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. The straight-line distance is only 2,500 km.

According to Lu’s study, the corridor is an important trade channel for the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA) and will benefit transportation and tourism in the surrounding regions.

New Concept: Nanning-Singapore Corridor

Lu said the route has two huge advantages, making it the most important route connecting China and the Indochina Peninsula. First, the landforms along the corridor are mostly coastal plains and hills, which are favorable for building infrastructure. Second, the existing transportation infrastructure is well-prepared.

Infrastructure map, provided by the Forum on China-ASEAN Free Trade Area

As shown on the map above, there are two different ways to travel from Nanning to Singapore -- by train or by car.

The railway line is almost complete. It starts in Nanning, connects with Vietnam’s north-to-south railway, and then goes through Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. The only missing links are to connect the railway to Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, and Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam.

The road begins in Nanning, links with Vietnam’s No. 1 national road in You Yiguan, and then travels through Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Most of the roads are highways or well-developed roads, although many of the roads from You Yiguan to Laos’s capital Vientiane need to be rebuilt or upgraded.