China Builds World's Highest Highway Tunnel
Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com
#tunnel #highway #china #record #construction #transportation
As reported news agency Xinhua, construction of a tunnel that will traverse Trola Mountain in southwestern Sichuan Province began on June 1. At an altitude of 4.24 to 4.38 kilometers, the Trola Mountain tunnel will be the world's highest on a highway. As part of Sichuan-Tibet Highway that links Chengdu, Sichuan in the east with Lhasa, Tibet in the west.
The 7-kilometers tunnel will shorten travel time across the mountain from more than two hours to only about 10 minutes, construction manager Li Ming said. He also added that, workers must first build an approach that is 14.06 kilometers long on the east side of the mountain.
The tunnel is scheduled to be completed in four years with an investment of $US173 million.
The 2,415 thousand kilometers Sichuan-Tibet highway is considered one the world's most deadly as it traverses a dozen rivers and 14 mountains with altitudes of 4 to 5 kilometers.
China has spent nearly $ US 21.6 billion on development of 188 key projects in Tibet between 2005 and 2010, and key among them are projects that link Tibet to the rest of China. And the governments of Sichuan and Tibet are planning to build more tunnels on several key mountains to improve traffic.
The 7-kilometers tunnel will shorten travel time across the mountain from more than two hours to only about 10 minutes, construction manager Li Ming said. He also added that, workers must first build an approach that is 14.06 kilometers long on the east side of the mountain.
The tunnel is scheduled to be completed in four years with an investment of $US173 million.
The 2,415 thousand kilometers Sichuan-Tibet highway is considered one the world's most deadly as it traverses a dozen rivers and 14 mountains with altitudes of 4 to 5 kilometers.
China has spent nearly $ US 21.6 billion on development of 188 key projects in Tibet between 2005 and 2010, and key among them are projects that link Tibet to the rest of China. And the governments of Sichuan and Tibet are planning to build more tunnels on several key mountains to improve traffic.
