The Tianshan Shengli Tunnel in China, measuring 22.13 km in length and the longest highway tunnel in the world, was officially opened to traffic on Friday.
Crossing the central section of the Tianshan Mountains in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in northwest China, the tunnel reduces a mountainous journey that previously took several hours to just 20 minutes.
As a vital artery linking the northern and southern urban areas of Xinjiang, the G0711 Urumqi–Yuli expressway, which includes the tunnel, entered service on the same day.
With the opening of the expressway, travel time between the two major cities has been reduced from seven hours to around three hours, promoting economic integration between northern and southern Xinjiang and creating new channels for external exchanges.
Construction of the expressway took five years. It stretches over 324.7 km and required a total investment of 46.7 billion yuan (approximately 6.63 billion US dollars).
The tunnel, which reaches a maximum depth of 1,112.2 meters, crosses 16 geological fault zones and faced several major engineering challenges.
