Understanding a city begins with its streets. Road names serve as geographical markers and cultural symbols, chronicling urban history and reflecting a city's development. On March 17, a proposal to rename "Chenzhuang Street" to "Luming Avenue" sparked widespread public interest. Behind this renaming lies a compelling narrative of Xuchang's urban transformation.
In recent years, Xuchang has continuously expanded its urban framework, with its cityscape evolving rapidly. Newly constructed roads receive names, while upgraded or expanded roads undergo renaming. Let us unfold the urban chronicle engraved in these road names and explore the unique imprints of Xuchang's developmental trajectory.
From "Street" to "Avenue": Growing with the City Today, the completed sections of Chenzhuang Street feature broad, smooth surfaces with constant vehicular flow, now functioning as a major urban artery that showcases the city's vibrancy. However, eighteen years ago, on November 28, 2008, this now prominent road was merely a secondary urban route. It originally ran from the Qingyi River in the west to Xuzhou Road in the east, named after its path through Chenzhuang Community in Tianbao Road Subdistrict. As the central urban area expanded, Chenzhuang Street's significance grew, necessitating extensions both eastward and westward.
As a critical east-west transportation corridor, Chenzhuang Street is planned to extend west to Xihuan Road and east to Zhongyuan Road. Upon completion, the 15-kilometer route, with widths ranging from 40 to 60 meters, will accelerate development west of the Beijing-Guangzhou Railway, improve local investment and residential conditions, and alleviate traffic pressure on Tianbao Road.
Last year, the newly constructed section between Laodong Road and Wenfeng Road opened to traffic. The upgraded street now features even pavement and clear markings, significantly enhancing traffic capacity and safety. This improvement has effectively diverted traffic from Wenfeng and Laodong Roads, reduced regional congestion, optimized the transportation network, and injected new vitality into urban development.
"With rapid urban development, Chenzhuang Street has evolved from a secondary road to a major thoroughfare. Its function and scale have substantially changed, making the current name inconsistent with its actual capacity. To maximize the role of place names in enhancing city image, promoting economic growth, serving residents' needs, and preserving cultural heritage, we propose renaming it Luming Avenue," explained an official from the Civil Affairs Bureau's Toponymy Division.
Road Renewal: Enhancing Urban Circulation On March 18, construction crews worked vigorously at the first phase of the Chenzhuang Street extension project between Weiwu Avenue and Songyuan Road. Machinery operated systematically while workers focused on their tasks, collectively advancing urban development.
"The project spans 1,005 meters from Weiwu Avenue to Xuzhou Road, with a planned 50-meter width accommodating eight lanes and a design speed of 60 km/h. It includes road construction, drainage systems, sewage and water supply networks, along with lighting, signage, traffic signals, and landscaping," stated Li Guofeng, the project site manager. "Divided into three phases, the first phase aims for completion by late October, greatly improving local mobility."
To further address traffic bottlenecks, the city has included the Chenzhuang Street connection project (linking Weiwu Avenue–Songyuan Road and Heping Road–Wuyi Road) among its top ten urban renewal priorities for 2026. The 3,745-meter project will integrate traffic facilities, underground pipelines, greenery, and lighting to enhance functionality and regional connectivity.
Chenzhuang Street's renewal is not an isolated case. In 2025, the city resurfaced 22 roads including Weiwen Road, Xueyuan Road, and Jian'an Avenue, connected five dead-end streets such as Furong North Fifth Street and Ruichang West Road, and upgraded five intersections including the Wenfeng Road–Dong Street junction. These improvements have streamlined travel and optimized urban operations, particularly after renovations to Qiyi Road and Weiwen Road alleviated downtown traffic pressure.
Road Naming: Documenting Urban Progress "Ordinary place names can reveal profound changes." Roads form a city's arteries, and their names act as cultural symbols reflecting historical evolution, environmental shifts, and local character. With 509 newly named roads in 2024 and 604 in 2025, Xuchang's expansion has accelerated road nomenclature.
Each naming or renaming aligns with urban growth, documenting the city's development. To ensure appropriateness, naming follows principles highlighting Three Kingdoms culture, historical preservation, and contemporary relevance. Main roads aside, secondary roads and smaller streets are named based on orientation (north-south routes as "Roads," east-west as "Streets"). Routes exceeding 5,000 meters and 60 meters wide earn "Avenue" status, while lanes near villages often inherit local names to preserve heritage.
The civil affairs department conducts field studies, expert reviews, and public consultations before finalizing names. Streets like Qixian Street, Binshui Road, and Tianyue Street now serve as urban "namecards"—some reflecting historical themes, others evoking local nostalgia or aspirations. They function as both navigational aids and testaments to urban expansion, carrying forward cultural memory.
"Though seemingly minor, road names hold great significance. We will standardize toponym management, improve public services, and integrate naming into urban development, transforming road names into dynamic representations of city identity that support societal and economic progress," a civil affairs official noted.