Mengzi–Hekou Railway

The Mengzi–Hekou railway or Menghe railway (simplified Chinese: 蒙河铁路; traditional Chinese: 蒙河鐵路; pinyin: měnghé tiělù), is a railroad in Yunnan Province of Southwest China. It is the southernmost component of the Kunming–Yuxi–Hekou railway.

The Mengzi–Hekou rail line runs 140 km (87 mi) from Mengzi City in southern Yunnan to the Hekou Yao Autonomous County on the border with Vietnam. Construction began in December 2008 and the line entered operation in December 2014.

A key element of the Mengzi–Hekou railway is the Taiyangzhai Tunnel (太阳寨隧道). The 7,414 meter-long tunnel is located in Yaoshan Township (瑶山乡) of Hekou County. Construction workers' working conditions in this tunnel have been reported as particularly difficult: with the temperature in the tunnel reaching 43°C and relative humidity 98%, it was nicknamed the "sauna tunnel" by the workers.

Drilling of this tunnel was completed in September 2013, making it possible for the entire railway project to stay on time for the completion by the end of 2014.

According to the report by Xinhua News Agency, the Mengzi–Hekou railway is to be opened on 10 December 2014 with 2 trains running from Kunming to Hekou with the maximum speed of 120 km/h and the travel time of 6 hours with the tickets sold in the following fare rates:

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