Railway line to link the tourist cities of Dali and Lijiang

Yunnan, like all China’s hinterland provinces, was facing a need to develop a high-quality transport network in order to facilitate the dissemination of the economic and social benefits of Chinese growth.

The development of the Yunnan Province rail network is part of the policy to boost growth and reduce poverty. The project is located in the northwest part of the province, in an area with significant development potential due to its potential for tourism and natural resources.

The project enabled the following:

• the construction of a 167 km-long railway line between Dali and Lijiang. This line is connected to a rail route which runs to the provincial capital Kunming 17 years and continues towards Vietnam in the South and Chengdu in the North;

• the construction of four stations (Hongshan, Shangcun, Heqing and Lijiang), loading facilities, and a station for containers in Lijiang, seven stops, and construction work to increase the capacity of existing facilities;

• the procurement of rolling stock, maintenance and signaling equipment, and a computerized management system for the operation of the line.

The project also included the acquisition of land and compensation, detailed studies and supervision, and institutional support for the operator of the line.

• The project connected two tourist destinations of national interest in an area which currently attracts millions of tourists each year;

• An increase in freight and passenger traffic between Dali and Lijiang;

• Helped reduce poverty and create jobs in all of the area’s economic sectors.