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Construction workers laboring the Ya'an-Kangding Highway face the daily dangers posed by geological condition and extreme weather.
To be completed in 2018, the highway is the first in the Ganzi Tibetan autonomous prefecture, and its construction can reduce travel time from Ya'an to Kangding from four to two hours.
Feng Zhiqian, one of the project managers, said that he felt guilty whenever he saw workers continuing their tasks despite injury or illness. Feng said that he was hand-tied since their project follows a tight schedule.
Feng and his 450-man team are constructing the New Erlang Mountain tunnel in Sichuan Province. Running 13.5 kilometers, the tunnel borders the Ya'an city and the Ganzi Tibetan autonomous prefecture.
"The complex, delicate geological condition and extreme weather pose great danger to our work and slowed down our construction process," Feng said.
Aside from health dangers, the team also spend less time with their families.
The 5,000-meter Ya'an-Kangding Highway will be opened in March 2018.
The Sichuan Transport Bureau said that the New Erlang Mountain tunnel will be open year-round, because it is protected from rain and snow that hassle travelers of the first Erlang Mountain tunnel.
To make the new tunnel safer, it will also include escape emergency routes and earthquake resistance features, Feng said.
