Electrified Railway Line in SW China Commissioned

Electrified Railway Line in SW China Commissioned

The southern section of an electrified railway route linking Sichuan with Yunnan, both in southwest China, starts operating Saturday after a technical appraisal and test run.

It marks the completion of the electrified railway network in the western part of China.

The southern section starts in Panzhihua of Sichuan Province and terminates in Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province, running a total length of 347 kilometers. The project cost a total of 1.8 billion yuan (about 216 million U.S. dollars) and construction began on the project in August 1998.

A total of eight bridges, 95 canal culverts, four telecommunications stations and a tunnel were built along the railway line. Construction at some spots were tough.

The completion of the electric railway line is expected to raise the freight volume from 13 million tons in 1996 to 24 million tons.