Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, China

🇨🇳 Yancheng (盐城) is a prefecture-level city in north-eastern Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China. As the city with the largest jurisdictional area in Jiangsu, Yancheng borders Lianyungang to the north, Huai'an to the west, Yangzhou and Taizhou to the south-west, Nantong to the south, and the Yellow Sea to the east.

Yancheng, is named after the salt harvest fields surrounding the city and production of sea salt in the region began as early as 119 BC, during the Western Han Dynasty. Its built up area of consists of the Tinghu and Yandu Districts. The economy is driven by Agriculture, industry and tertiary business.

History Yancheng has a history of 2,100 years since the first canton was founded here in Han Dynasty at year 119 BC. It was named for the salt reserves in rivers around the area, its name literally meaning "Salt City". In later years, the city was the home of Fan Zhongyan, the 12th century statesman and Shi Nai'an, the reputed author of famous novels.

Yancheng was in the limelight during the Chinese Civil War from the 1930s to 1940s. The New Fourth Army led by the Chinese Communist Party was reestablished in Yancheng after being ambushed and battered by the enemy. After the revival, the Army played a very important role in the war and finally the foundation of the People's Republic of China. Many monuments in honor of these heroes can still be found around Yancheng.

Geography Yancheng occupies roughly 582 km (362 mi) of coastline, more than half of the whole province. By the end of the Mesolithic period, the marine transgressions changed almost of the area into a shallow bay. Continued deposition of silt carried by the Yangtze River and the Huai River extend its coast to the east gradually. Since 1128, the course of the Yellow River have changed to join up with the Huai River. The change has accelerated.

Administration The prefecture-level city of Yancheng administers 9 county-level divisions, including 3 districts, 1 county-level city and 5 counties.

Economy The economy of Yancheng City has sustained its momentum. Preliminary statistics found that in 2015 gross regional products of the city was RMB 421,250,000,000, a 10.5 percent increase by comparable price from previous year. Agriculture has increased by RMB 51,653,000,000 in value, a 3.6 percent increase from previous year; industry has increased by RMB 192,547,000,000 in value, a 10.5 percent increase from previous year; tertiary business has increased by RMB 177,050,000,000 in value, a 12.5 percent increase from previous year.

Gross regional products per capita was RMB 58,299 (or US$8,862 at the average exchange rate of 2015), a 10.4 percent increase from previous year.

Education: University • Yancheng Institute of Technology • Yancheng Teachers University.

Tourist Industry Outdoor activities include the Yangcheng wetlands and salt marshes, home of some unique and endangered species, including Père David's deer and the red-crowned crane. There is also a famous food street in east road springing up in recent years in which there are many restaurants in the style of Huizhou architecture.

Transport: Road Expressways • G15 Shenyang–Haikou Expressway; • G1515 Yancheng–Jingjiang Expressway; • G1516 Yancheng–Luoyang Expressway; National Highway • China National Highway 204.

Transport: Rail Xinyi-Changxing Railway runs through the city.

Transport: Bus The BRT system of Yancheng uses a dedicated bus lane on a 16 km (9.9 mi) route and as of 2010 carries 33,000 passengers per day. The first line went into service in 2010.

The Yancheng District SRT Line 1 began testing in March 2021 and officially opened for trial operation on 16 April 2021 with a 17-station, 13 km (8.1 mi) route. The line uses the Autonomous Rail Rapid Transit system with four-segment 320 passenger guided vehicles. During the trial operation, the B3 line of Yancheng City Public Transport Company will run on the same line as the SRT.

Transport: Air Yancheng Nanyang International Airport now flies directly to Shanghai and Beijing, as well as flying directly to Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and so on.