BIZCHINA / Center

Technology takes railway to new level
By Zhao Huanxin (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-06-26 08:35

The ministry is determined to prove that the new line is "harmonious with the ecology." For one thing, no waste will be discharged along the road from the trains, according to Sun.

Lakes, plants and desertification along the route will be monitored, as will animal populations, he said.

Asked about the hazard of natural disasters such as earthquakes, which are frequent on the plateau, Sun said the route had been designed to avoid regions with active seismic activity.

In the vulnerable regions that the track has to pass through, constructors used rail beds rather than tunnels and bridges, and retrofitted structures to minimize the effects of any possible tremors, he said.

Sun said that from February, the Qinghai-Tibet Railway Corp has been deploying staff along the new route. The company has employed 450 people for station and train services.

An additional 1,000 work on telecommunications and power supply on the railway, he said.

"All the workers have undergone medical check-ups to make sure they can react and adapt to high altitude conditions and effective measures have been taken to improve working and living conditions on the plateau," said Sun.

Monument

Sun, 65, who has directed the construction of a dozen railways since 1962, said the Qinghai-Tibet Railway was the one that impressed him most.

He said he was proud no workers died of altitude sickness during construction, a testimony to the ministry's precaution measures.

Sun revealed that the ministry is considering building a commemorative structure on the Tanggula Mountain Pass, bearing the inscription: "Altitude 5,072, the world's highest railway."


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