Construction started in September 2010 on the Yuan 13.3bn ($US 2.15bn) railway, which will have 13 stations and an 875m-long bridge across the Yarlun Zangbo river. According to local press reports, infrastructure works are nearly complete and commissioning is expected to take around two months.
The new line is designed for 120km/h operation and does not encounter any permafrost zones, which caused significant difficulties in the construction of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway.
