Deep in the folds of the hills in southern Sichuan, the geological hammer strikes the prelude to the high-speed rail era. When the steel artery from Luzhou to Zunyi attempts to cross the six coal belts, a group of geologists who are in dialogue with the rock formations are using precise analysis of the goaf to anchor a safe starting point for this Sichuan Guizhou corridor.

Recently, the Chuannan Geological Science and Technology Innovation Center of the Sixth Geological Brigade of Sichuan Province has made new progress in the field of railway geological services. After winning the bid for the special research project on the goaf of the Dacun Zunyi Railway, it has once again won the bid for the special research project on the goaf of the newly-built Luzhou Zunyi Railway via Xishui.

The construction of the new Luzhou Zunyi Railway is a national medium - to long-term railway network planning project, with six crossings of coal belts through the Xishui scheme, and prominent risks in goaf areas. The stability of goaf directly affects the safety of railway route selection and is prone to causing damage to roadbeds, bridges, and tunnels. Fine geological analysis needs to be completed during the route selection stage.

The line was originally planned as a conventional railway, and Sichuan and Guizhou provinces are continuously striving to include it in the national railway network planning and revision according to the high-speed railway standard of 350 kilometers per hour. In October 2025, Shudao Group launched the pre feasibility study bidding for the Sichuan section of the Luzhou Zunyi high-speed railway, providing technical support for project compliance. The winning bid for this geological project represents the continuous progress of preliminary research in the project.

Two provinces jointly promote project inclusion regulations

Railway planning belongs to the national authority, and the Luzhou Zunyi Railway does not currently have the conditions for high-speed rail construction. Sichuan continues to strive to include it in the 15th Five Year Plan for railway planning. Guizhou has included the Guizhou section of the Luzhou Zunyi Railway as a high-speed rail function in the preliminary planning scheme. The pre feasibility study plan shows that the total length of the line is about 235 kilometers, with a total investment of about 54 billion yuan. Multiple stations are planned along the line, which can connect multiple high-speed railway trunk lines. Keywords: Luzhou Zunyi High speed Railway, Railway, Western Land Sea New Corridor

Synchronous landing of supporting freight railways

In order to meet the demand for freight transportation, Sichuan Guizhou plans to build the Dacun Zunyi railway, which will connect with the western land sea new channel, the Xubi railway. The project proposal has been approved and the plan is to start construction by the end of 2026. Luzhou Zunyi high-speed railway can complement the short board of regional high-speed railway and drive the development of Baijiu and tourism industries along the line. At the same time, the southward high-speed railway channel in Sichuan will be opened up, forming a 350 kilometer high-speed railway new trunk line from Chengdu to Guiyang via Luzhou.Editor/Gong Ziwei