China-Laos Railway transports over 600,000 cross-border passenger trips

China

China-Laos Railway transports over 600,000 cross-border passenger trips

2025-10-16 16:26 Last Updated At：17:07

The China-Laos Railway had welcomed more than 600,000 cross-border passengers as of Wednesday, injecting new vitality into the tourism industry along the route and the regional economic development.

The China-Laos Railway officially opened in December 2021 and launched international services linking Kunming and Vientiane in April 2023. The international service has been continuously optimized by railway authorities of both countries to meet the rising demand for cross-border travel.

To meet growing demand, this railway service added a second pair of international trains between Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, and Vientiane,capital of Laos on July 18 this year, doubling the number of daily trains to four. Each train now offers up to 420 seats, with daily passenger numbers reaching over 1,400.

To date, travelers from 115 countries and regions, including Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, the United States and the United Kingdom, have taken the cross-border trains, fueling tourism, hotels and restaurants along the route. The accelerated flow of passengers, cargoes and information has injected new vitality into the regional economic development.

Shenzhou-23 astronauts board spaceship ahead of launch

The three astronauts of the Shenzhou-23 crewed spaceflight mission have boarded the spacecraft for a flight to China’s Tiangong space station.

The Shenzhou-23 crewed spaceship is scheduled to blast off at 23:08 Beijing Time (15:08 GMT) from northwest China's Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.

The three Chinese astronauts, commander Zhu Yangzhu, spacecraft pilot Zhang Zhiyuan and payload specialist Lai Ka-ying, climbed aboard the spaceship with the help of technicians.

Following the launch, the astronauts will complete an in-orbit rotation with the outgoing Shenzhou-21 crew, and one of them will conduct a one-year in-orbit stay, double the usual duration of previous Shenzhou missions.

Notably, astronaut Lai Ka-ying is also the first astronaut from China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Shenzhou-23 marks the 40th flight of China's manned spaceflight program, and the seventh manned flight mission since the Tiangong space station entered its application and development phase in late 2022.