There is an old saying called "Shu Road is difficult to go to the blue sky", which refers to the mountain road from Sichuan to Shaanxi through the Qinling Mountains. But at present, when it comes to building railways, the most difficult part of Sichuan is still in western Sichuan. The Sichuan-Qingdao Railway, which connects Sichuan, Gansu and Qinghai, is another "Heavenly Road" built on the plateau at an altitude of 3,000 meters after the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, also known as the "Xinshu Road".
The Sichuan-Qingdao Railway is an integral part of China's "eight vertical and eight horizontal" high-speed rail network from Lanzhou, Xining to Guangzhou, with the line starting from Chengdu East Railway Station in the east and Xining, Qinghai in the west. The main line is about 836 kilometers long and has a design speed of 200 kilometers per hour, ending the history of no railways in western Sichuan.
At the end of November 2023, the first section of the Sichuan-Qingdao Railway - Qingbaijiangdong to Zhenjiangguan Station was opened.
There are also many tourists on the train who go to Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong Scenic Area in Aba Prefecture, Sichuan. Originally, from Chengdu to Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong Scenic Area was mainly by plane or tourist bus, but now tourists can take the train.
Due to the transfer from Zhenjiangguan Station to Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong, the influx of tourists has made the plateau town of Zhenjiangguan lively, and tourists will not only eat and stay here, but also buy local special agricultural products along the way.
Although Maoxian is much farther away from Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong Scenic Area, the number of tourists in the ancient Qiang city of Maoxian County has skyrocketed after the train opened. According to the deputy general manager of the Maoxian Qiangheng Cultural Tourism Company, after the opening of the Sichuan-Qingdao railway, the number of tourists here has increased by more than 10 times compared with the past.
Tourism is one of the pillar industries in Maoxian County, employing 30,000 or 40,000 people. Since the opening of the Sichuan-Qingdao Railway, Maoxian's tourism industry has become popular, and other industries are also planning new development. Li Jianjun, director of the local Bureau of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said that since its opening on November 28, 2023, nearly 100,000 tourists have entered Maoxian County through the Sichuan-Qingdao Railway.
At present, the Sichuan-Qingdao Railway is still continuing to be built to the west. Deep in the western Sichuan Plateau in Ruoergai County, Aba Prefecture, a tunnel is being excavated. The western Sichuan Plateau has complex geology, many wetlands and many nature reserves, which increases the difficulty of tunnel construction, especially blasting.
In order to cope with altitude sickness, an oxygen chamber was installed on the construction site, and people came to inhale oxygen every day. In the cold and low-pressure hypoxic environment, the workers overcame difficulties and stepped up construction.
The section of the project through Aba Prefecture is known as the most complex and difficult section of the Sichuan-Qingdao railway line. Once it is opened, it will accelerate the completion of the Sichuan-Qingdao Railway.
*Please specify CCTV Finance.
Editor: Angel.