New Rail Line Connects Northwest, Southwest China

A north-south artery. To the northwest, it will be integrated into the Chongqing-Xinjiang-Europe railway, linking Chongqing with European countries.

Due to the complicated geographic conditions along the way, this project is said to be the most difficult one in China's rail history. A total of 226 tunnels and 396 bridges are required to pass through the mountains and rivers, most notably the Qinling Mountains. The line also traverses a host of fault zones.
Humaling Tunnel, a 13-km passage full of water-rich siltstone, took eight years to dig through alone.

As more than 72 percent of the line is bridges and tunnels, safety is the most important issue during operation, said Tian Yu，a conductor who has been working on the railway for 20 years.

"When passing through the tunnels, negative wind pressure can easily hurt the people who stand at the junction of the two carriages," he said. "Our staff need to pay more attention to educate the passengers."