Advertisement
China travel
EconomyChina Economy

China sets record with high-speed rail breakthrough under Yangtze River

The engineering feat marks the longest continuous underwater excavation achieved by a drilling machine of its kind, state media reports

2-MIN READ2-MIN
2
Listen
The shield tunneling machine “Linghang” in the Chongming-Taicang tunnel under the Yangtze River, taken on Thursday. Photo: Xinhua
Emma Main Shanghai

China’s largest shield tunnelling machine built for high-speed rail has successfully carved a path beneath the Yangtze River, a milestone expected to help strengthen the country’s hi-tech manufacturing supply chains and advanced research capacity.

The Chongtai Yangtze River Tunnel, scheduled for completion by the end of this year, will connect Shanghai’s Chongming Island with Taicang in neighbouring Jiangsu province. For the first time, the project will bring high-speed rail services to the island, the country’s third-largest.

The machine, dubbed “Linghang”, completed an 11.3km (7-mile) underwater stretch – the longest distance ever bored by a 15-metre-wide model in a single run, state news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday. The work demands extreme technical precision to accommodate trains scheduled to run at 350km/h (217.5mph), making it the fastest underwater high-speed tunnel worldwide once operational.

Crossing the Yangtze River inside the tunnel is projected to take two minutes, according to China Railway Tunnel Group, a state-owned firm working on the project. Operating 89 metres (292 feet) beneath the waterway, the structure is engineered to withstand heavy water pressure and ground settlement risks.

“Even minor alignment deviations during excavation could compromise rail travel safety and comfort,” Wang Yi, deputy project manager at China Railway Tunnel Group, told Shanghai-based news outlet The Paper in April.

“With a design speed of 350 km/h (217.5mph), we have tightened precision requirements for the tunnelling machine to the millimetre scale.”

Advertisement
Select Voice
Select Speed
1.00x