Passenger Train to Lhasa to be Launched by July 2006
In a few months’ time from now, travelers will be able to get to Lhasa by train from major cities in China. The remote capital of Tibet will be a mere 48-hour train ride away from Beijing. Officials at China’s Ministry of Railway made the announcement today. The rail link between Golmud in Qinghai Province and Lhasa - 1,142 kilometers in length and featuring the world’s highest elevation for railway - was completed earlier this year, which integrated China’s last provincial region with no trains into the national railway network. Unlike in the United States, trains remains an important and often preferred means of travel. The Chinese company in charge of the construction and operation of the Golmud-Lhasa train line, Qinghai-Tibet Railway Group, has recently signed agreements with a company in the United States to provide high-quality tourist train service.
According to officials in China’s Ministry of Railway, passenger trains to Lhasa will be equipped with cabins for two or four travelers each. There will also be equipments that to pump oxygen into train cars to help passengers who may be more sensitive to the high elevation of the Tibetan plateau. Measures will be taken to prevent any waste be discharged en route to protect the environment, officials say.
In addition to operations between Beijing and Lhasa, passenger trains will also depart for Lhasa from Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu.
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