Tibetan roads reach out to rural areas

LHASA: The Tibet autonomous region invested heavily in traffic and transportation projects last year, steering nearly 36.7 billion yuan ($5.36 billion) to such projects with more than 16 billion yuan used for fixed-asset investment, according to the region’s traffic and transportation department.
Thanks to the heavy investment, Tibet’s 662 townships and 4,382 villages have been linked by paved roads. Ninety-five percent of its townships and 78 percent of its villages are now connected by roads, the department said on Monday during the region’s annual work conference on traffic and transportation.
The region saw an increase of 720 kilometers in its rural network, and its total road network ran to more than 121,000 km last year.
In 2022, 185 road construction projects were undertaken and 117 unsafe bridges were renovated in the region’s rural areas. Passenger bus services in rural areas increased, with 612 townships and 3,705 villages linked with shuttle buses as of December. About 90 percent of its townships and 69 percent of its villages had access to shuttle bus services.
The region’s traffic and transportation sectors last year moved 3.98 million passengers and a freight volume of around 39 million metric tons. This year, the region will use 40 billion yuan for traffic and transportation projects. The total highway distance is expected to reach 124,000 km.
–The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item