STORY: How is highway tunnel constructed above 3,000 meters in China
SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 26, 2024
DATELINE: Jan. 31, 2024
LENGTH: 00:02:13
LOCATION: URUMQI, China
CATEGORY: SOCIETY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the construction site of the Tianshan Shengli tunnel
2. STANDUP (English): GU YU, Xinhua correspondent
3. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): YANG CHENJIAN, Operator of the tunnel boring machine
4. STANDUP (English): GU YU, Xinhua correspondent
5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): GAO YANYAO, Technician of the project

STORYLINE:

The Tianshan Shengli tunnel, located in China's Xinjiang, is one of the country's longest expressway tunnels under construction.

Stretching for 22 km, the tunnel is also a crucial part of the 1,300-km expressway linking the regional capital Urumqi with Yuli County, also in Xinjiang.

The construction of the tunnel, at an altitude of 3,200 meters in the Tianshan Mountains, faces severe climate and geological challenges.

STANDUP (English): GU YU, Xinhua correspondent
"Here is the central control room of the tunnel boring machine, and every digging and every drilling step of this giant is operated and controlled here."

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): YANG CHENJIAN, Operator of the tunnel boring machine
"Do you feel the cart is going up? Do you feel it's going up? It's going up, okay!"

Yang has been working in the Shengli tunnel for four years. He's responsible for operating a 282-meter-long tunnel boring machine, which weighs nearly 2,900 tonnes.

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): YANG CHENJIAN, Operator of the tunnel boring machine
"As I graduated from Xinjiang Normal University, and after several years of working elsewhere, I chose to come back and join construction projects in Xinjiang, which is also a response or commitment to the land that I love. 
Our project is for the public good. It's particularly honorable for me to participate in the construction of this tunnel."

STANDUP (English): GU YU, Xinhua correspondent
"I am now in the main tunnel which is under construction. After it is completed, it is a carriageway. Compared with the central heading tunnel, it is excavated by the traditional method."

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): GAO YANYAO, Technician of the project 
"The blasting process is advancing with a time lag. We excavate the entire cross-section by hollowing out the center first. After completion, we initiate blasts in concentric circles, progressing towards the outer perimeter. Each advancement typically covers a distance of three to five meters."

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): GAO YANYAO, Technician of the project
"I have been participating in the construction of this tunnel since the beginning, and when completed, it will make traveling much more convenient for local people. Whenever I think of it, I would feel very proud."

The construction of the tunnel is expected to be completed in 2025.

The Urumqi-Yuli expressway will then become a major artery connecting northern and southern Xinjiang and shorten the travel time from Urumqi to Korla from seven hours to three hours. 

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Urumqi, China.
(XHTV)