Main body of Lhasa-Xigaze Expressway completed

LHASA, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- The main body of an expressway that will link the cities of Lhasa and Xigaze in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region was completed on Tuesday.

The left hole of Phupa Tunnel, the last tunnel on the nearly 167-kilometer Lhasa-Xigaze Expressway, was drilled through in the early hours of Tuesday, marking the completion of the main body of the road.

Phupa Tunnel is over 3.7 kilometers in length and has a maximum burial depth of 448 meters. As the expressway runs through the valley areas of Yarlung Zangbo River, workers had to overcome construction difficulties such as fractured zones, mud and inrushes of water.

The major four-lane road is designed to facilitate speeds of 100 kilometers per hour. It has a total of 22 tunnels and 122 bridges, with their combined length accounting for more than half of the total length of the expressway, according to the regional transport department.

"Once completed, it will serve as an important channel linking Lhasa and the west of Xizang, and contribute to the region's further opening up to South Asia," according to an official of the regional transport department.

The Lhasa-Xigaze Expressway is expected to open to traffic by the end of June 2024.