The preliminary design of the Yining Aksu Railway has been officially approved. This strategic channel, which has been planned for more than ten years, has finally completed the final critical approval before construction begins. From the Ili River Valley to the hinterland of southern Xinjiang, a steel giant dragon crossing the Tianshan Mountains is about to take off. The project has a total length of 794 kilometers, with 455 kilometers of new construction, a total investment of over 37.7 billion yuan, and a construction period of 5 years. After completion, the travel time from Yining to Aksu will be shortened from the past 16 hours to 8 hours, completely rewriting the transportation map of Xinjiang.

Eight year campaign to break through the Tianshan Mountains

Since 2009, the technical team has compared and selected three channels in the west, center, and east of an area of 180000 square kilometers. The survey and design were completed in 2021, and a consolidation plan was added in 2025. The line starts from Yining Station, passes through Gongliu and Xinyuan along the Ili River Valley to Bayinbuluke, and then crosses the Tianshan Mountains through a long tunnel to connect to the Southern Xinjiang Railway. The project is a Class I single track electrified railway of China Railway, with a speed limit of 160 kilometers per hour on regular sections and 120 kilometers per hour on the Tianshan mountain crossing section. The preliminary project has been launched in September 2025.

Half of the distance between northern and southern Xinjiang

For a long time, railway exchanges between northern and southern Xinjiang have required detours around Turpan, with a total distance of 1616 kilometers and a travel time of 16 hours from Yining to Aksu. After the completion of the Yia Railway, the transportation distance was reduced to 820 kilometers and the operating time was halved to 8 hours, completely breaking the single detour pattern. The project connects the Jinghuo, Ku'e, and Southern Xinjiang railways, forming the Xinjiang Railway Loop with the existing road network, greatly enhancing the mobility and strategic value of the road network, and making Northern and Southern Xinjiang from afar to within reach. Keywords: frontline engineering, Ayi railway infrastructure construction

A new link to stabilize Xinjiang and strengthen the border

As a key project of the western border railway, the Yia Railway is not only a transportation artery, but also a development link for stabilizing Xinjiang, strengthening the border, and promoting regional cooperation. It activates cultural tourism, agriculture and animal husbandry, and mineral resources along the route, promotes the coordinated development of Yili, Bayinbuluke, and Aksu, and assists in the implementation of the Western Development and Xinjiang Governance Strategy in the new era. From blueprint to construction, this steel dragon that crosses the Tianshan Mountains will completely rewrite the transportation map of Xinjiang and inject strong momentum into the coordinated development of northern and southern Xinjiang.Editor/Gao Xue