China's Xinjiang completes world's longest expressway tunnel through challenging mountains

The tunneling of the Tianshan Shengli Tunnel, the world's longest expressway tunnel, was completed Monday morning through the snow-covered mountains of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, marking a significant milestone in China's infrastructure development.

With its construction starting in 2020, the 22.13-kilometer tunnel, a landmark transportation project which is expected to turn China into a country with strong transport network and a key project along Urumqi-Yuli highway in the Tianshan Mountains, passes through a cold and high altitude zone with harsh climate and geological conditions.

Crossing Tianshan Mountains via National Highway 216 usually takes about three hours. With the completion of the Tianshan Shengli Tunnel, the journey time will be reduced to just 20 minutes.

The Tianshan Shengli Tunnel is located in a sparsely populated area of the Tianshan Mountains, with an average construction elevation of over 3,000 meters and crossing 16 fault zones.

Over the past four years, more than 3,000 construction workers have overcome various geological challenges and risks through significant breakthroughs in new technologies, processes, and equipment, setting a new record as the longest expressway tunnel in the world. This project has become another important milestone in global tunnel engineering.

"The Tianshan Shengli Tunnel has achieved significant breakthroughs in new technologies and equipment, setting a new record as the longest expressway tunnel in the world," said Zhou Rongfeng, head of the Highway Bureau at the Ministry of Transport.

As the tunnel has been drilled through, construction will proceed on the Tianshan Shengli Tunnel's pavement, electromechanical systems, landscaping, and other ancillary works, accelerating the overall progress of constructing the Urumqi-Yuli Expressway.

Upon its completion, the Urumqi-Yuli expressway will reduce the travel time between Urumqi and Korla from 7 hours to just 3 hours, cutting transportation costs by 15 percent.

The Urumqi-Yuli Expressway, spanning approximately 319.7 kilometers, is a key segment of the G0711 Urumqi-Ruoqiang Expressway. It traverses the Tianshan Mountains and serves as the most convenient and efficient route from Urumqi to southern Xinjiang. To the east, it connects with Qinghai and southwest China, and even the new western land-sea corridor, significantly enhancing the land link between Xinjiang and coastal regions.

China's Xinjiang completes world's longest expressway tunnel through challenging mountains

China's Xinjiang completes world's longest expressway tunnel through challenging mountains

China's Xinjiang completes world's longest expressway tunnel through challenging mountains

China's Xinjiang completes world's longest expressway tunnel through challenging mountains

Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang called for enhanced bilateral cooperation and friendship with Singapore when he met with Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality on Monday.

Ding, who is also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, said that the long-term and stable development of China-Singapore relations has benefited from the strategic guidance of the leaders of both countries, who have upheld the correct political direction.

The two sides should continue to enhance mutual trust, respect each other's core interests, and ensure the steady and sustained progress of their friendly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation, he said.

Gan said that Singapore highly values its relations with China, firmly upholds the one-China principle, opposes the secessionist forces in Taiwan, and is willing to maintain close exchanges with China at all levels to promote greater development of bilateral relations.

Ding and Gan co-chaired four China-Singapore mechanism meetings on bilateral cooperation, namely, the 21st meeting of the China-Singapore Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation, the 26th meeting of the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park Joint Steering Council, the 17th meeting of the China-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Joint Steering Council, and the ninth meeting of the China-Singapore (Chongqing) Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity Joint Steering Council.

They comprehensively reviewed and summarized the progress of practical cooperation between the two countries, clarifying the direction and priorities for cooperation in the next stage.

Both sides agreed to deepen the alignment of development plans, promote the upgrading of major projects, cultivate and strengthen new quality productive forces, jointly safeguard the multilateral trading system, and better promote the development of both countries and the prosperity and stability of the region.

Following the meetings, Ding and Gan witnessed together the exhibition of achievements in China-Singapore cooperation, and attended the launching ceremony of two freight trains under the China-Singapore Multi-modal Demonstration Project. They also visited the comprehensive exhibition hall of China-Singapore interconnectivity projects and Chongqing digital city operation and governance center.

At the invitation of Ding, Gan is on a visit to China from December 15 to 16.

Chinese vice premier calls for enhanced cooperation with Singapore