Jingmen

Jingmen
Prefecture-level city
Location of Jingmen within Hubei
Country	China
Province	Hubei
Area
• Prefecture-level city	4,789 sq mi (12,404 km2)
Population  (2002)
• Prefecture-level city	2,984,000
• Metro	350,000
Time zone	UTC+8 (China standard time)

Jingmen (simplified Chinese: 荆门; traditional Chinese: 荊門; pinyin: Jīngmén) is a prefecture-level city in Hubei province of the People's Republic of China. Jingmen is within an area where cotton and oil crops are planted. The population of the city is approximately 2,984,000 (prefecture-level population). The urban area of Jingmen City has a population of about 350,000. Jingmen is so named as in ancient times it was the "gate of Jing province (荊州)", where "men" (门) means gate.

Geography

Jingmen is located about four hours away from Wuhan by bus, and about three hours by rail. A new train service was introduced from Jingmen to Wuhan in 2004. Jingmen is very close to many great tourist attractions such as Changban Slope of Three Kingdoms fame, the Wudang Mountains, and the Ming Tomb in Zhongxiang (a World Heritage site only an hour away). As it is located in central China, Jingmen is within easy reach of almost anywhere in the country, taking about 18 hours to either Beijing or Guangzhou by train, or two hours by train to Yichang, home of the Gezhouba Dam project and Three Gorges Dam. From here travellers can fly to many destinations.

The main city of Jingmen has 3 parallel roads:

• Xiangshan Dadao - The main avenue of Jingmen City. Most governmental buildings are here. Most civil functions, including hospitals, recreational areas, hotels, and the only university in Jingmen - Jingchu University of Technology, are alongside the road.
• Changning Dadao - All big telecommunication companies set up there branches here. Also there are many cellphone shops. The Jingmen railway station is to the north of Changning Dadao.
• Baiyun Dadao - The inner city part of National Highway 207, and a route to the Xiangfan-Jingzhou Highway. A major route for cargo transportation.

• Jinxia Lu - Not a main avenue, but an important street in the city centre. Lots of small shops and schools here.

Crisscrossing these three roads are the roads Xiangshan 1st to 3rd, so by using these main arteries it is possible to go almost anywhere in Jingmen. The main commercial area is Zhongtian Street (formerly Jiefang (Liberty) Road) which also crisscrosses the three main roads. Xiangshan 3 road leads behind the Jingmen Foreign Language school and doesn't actually provide a direct link from Xiangshan Dadao to Changning Dadao.

Jingmen from the summit of Xiangshan hill.

Jingmen is surrounded by hills and temples within easy reach.

Climate

Jingmen has a temperate climate, with January the coldest month and July the hottest month. The temperature goes up to 38 °C at noon in summer, with uncomfortable humidity in July. The temperature also goes below 0 °C in winter, with snow every year.

Rainfall is high in April to September, with less in autumn (the fall) and winter.

Education

Jingchu University of Technology (simplified Chinese: 荆楚理工学院), Formerly Jingmen University) founded in early 2007, is the only university in the city of Jingmen. Notable high schools include Longquan High School, No.1 High School of Jingmen City and Dongbao High School. Notable middle schools include the private Foreign Language School of Jingmen City, Haihui Middle School and Xiangshan Middle School. Notable primary schools include Jingmen Experimental Primary School, Red Flag Primary School of Jingmen City and Daqiao (Rail Bridge) Primary School.

Transportation

Two highways go through Jingmen, the Jingmen-Yichang Highway and the Xiangfan-Jingzhou Highway. The Wuhan-Jingmen Highway has been approved and is currently under construction. After its completion, the traveling time between Wuhan and Jingmen will be reduced to less than 2 hours. The National Highway 207 also passes through Jingmen City.

Jingmen interlinks the national Jiaozuo-Liuzhou Railway and the local Changjiangbu-Jingmen Railway. Travelling to Jingmen by railway is convenient, though takes time.

Economy

The economy in Jingmen consists mainly of agriculture and industry. The service sector is not as developed as manufacturing.

The most important industry in Jingmen is petroleum refining. The Jingmen Branch of Sinopec is a main producer of oil products in central China, refining crude oil extracted from Nanyang Oilfield in Henan Province and the Jianghan Oilfield in Hubei Province.

Other important industries include power generation, the production of agricultural chemicals and cement, and beer-making.