A new riverside walkway along Beitang River in Xinjie Neighborhood of Xiaoshan District recently opened to the public. The riverside boardwalk is an open space integrating leisure, fishing and sightseeing, offering the public a chance to admire beautiful scenery at their doorway. 

Dug in 1977, the 36.25-km east-west river is the largest manmade watercourse with the highest standards, widest range of functions and most enormous navigation benefits in the reclaimed land area of Xiaoshan District. Turning local saline-alkali soil into fertile land of rice and fish, the river is dubbed the “river of life” for the reclaimed land area of Xiaoshan District. 

The section in the Xinjie Neighborhood passes villages including Changshantou, Tongxin, Shanmozhi and Chenjiayuan, as well as residential communities of Changshan, Xinrun and Xinhe. The riverside boardwalk is 2.7 km in length. It starts from the Changshan No. 1 Bridge and ends at the Beer Square around Zhonghua Bridge. The fence was renovated and barrier structures were removed, making the scene from the boardwalk more amicable. In addition, lightening facilities were installed. By renovating the parking lots, guard barriers, landscape and lightening facilities, the new riverside boardwalk is connected with the greenway in Shanmozhi Village and Shuangwei Village. A new leisure space offering diverse sights has been created for local residents.