Xinhua News reported that on June 22, China Railway has linked Lijiang and Shangri-La with the Xiao Zhongdian Tunnel No. 2, which is the railway line’s first tunnel project to connect Lijiang with Shangri-La.

Construction on the railway line from Lijiang to Shangri-La began at the end of 2014. The tunnel, located in Xiao Zhongdian Township in Shangri-La, is a single-cave, single-line tunnel that is 360 meters long, with a maximum depth of around 43 meters. Since construction began, China Railway staff has overcome high altitude sickness and other conditions of the harsh, natural environment, broken through rock and unstable conditions, developed a special construction program, and developed construction safety measures.

After the Lijiang-Shangri-La line is created, the two tourism hotspots of Lijiang and Dechen will be closely linked, while at the same time promoting tourism channels between Kunming and Chuxiong, Dali, Lijiang, and Shangri-La, advantageously developing the natural tourism resources of Yunnan’s northwest region.