Published by World Tibet Network News - Wednesday, December 27, 1995

Xining, Dec 23 (Xinhua), renovation on the Qinghai- Tibet highway, an artery linking Tibet with China's hinterland, is drawing to an end. about 90 percent of the project has been completed so far and the remaining part is to be finished before august 1996, said Feng Zhenglin, deputy director of the Tibet Autonomous regional communications bureau. As the 1,970-km-long highway handles 85 percent of the total transport in and out of Tibet, it was described as a "lifeline" by local residents. However, a 700-km section was seriously damaged by seasonal melting of frozen earth as it locates at the frozen belt with a high altitude. To ensure a smooth transport, the central government has allocated 800 million yuan for renovation of the bumpy section since 1991. Emphasis was placed on a 339-km section in mountainous areas with an average altitude of 4,000 meters above the sea level. An 11-km section was built with such new materials as polystyrene and steel fibre at Kunlun mountainous area to prevent road cave-in. C

hina will pour a huge sum of investment in the second phase during the ninth five-year plan period (1996-2000) with an aim to turn the road into the highest crisscross expressway in the world, Feng said.