Deep in the mountains of eastern Chongqing, the roar of machinery has replaced the leisure of holidays. In the Shizhu Tunnel of the Yifu High speed Railway, nearly a thousand builders celebrated the birthday of the motherland with their palm face as the battlefield and the rhythm of drilling with drill rods. This high-speed railway artery that crosses the mountains is quietly narrowing the temporal and spatial distance between Sichuan Chongqing and Central China with every inch of excavation.

During the National Day holiday in 2026, when the whole country was celebrating, the construction site in Yudongshan District of the project was busy. The builders rushed to meet the deadline and presented practical gifts to celebrate the birthday of the motherland, promoting the quality and efficiency improvement of this key livelihood project. As a key control project along the entire line, the construction of the 14623 meter long Shizhu Tunnel is tight and orderly. On site intelligent three arm rock drilling rig performs precise operations, with multiple drilling arms synchronously carrying out efficient construction. Operators finely adjust equipment parameters and steadily carry out palm face rock drilling operations, relying on intelligent equipment to ensure efficient and accurate tunnel excavation.

Tunnel construction faces numerous challenges

The Shizhu Tunnel is the second longest tunnel on the entire Yifu High speed Railway, with high construction difficulty and safety risks. The tunnel construction requires crossing the Yuli Railway and Zhangnan Expressway, and passing under the Caojiachong Reservoir. The geological conditions in the area are complex, and the construction technical standards are strict. In order to seize the construction window period, during the National Day holiday, all staff members of the project department were on duty, and nearly a thousand builders worked in shifts and posted maps to ensure the safety red line was strictly observed and the project progressed according to plan.

At present, the cumulative excavation of the Shizhu Tunnel is 3375.3 meters, the main tunnel has completed 1365.1 meters, and the 2119.7 meter transverse tunnel has been fully connected, opening up a fast construction channel for the future. The Shazi Town Tunnel is advancing synchronously, with a total excavation of 2264.8 meters. The main tunnel has been completed for 1048 meters, and the 1266 meter horizontal tunnel has been constructed for 1236 meters. The overall progress is in line with the plan.

Multi point synchronous assault across the entire line

In addition to tunnel engineering, multiple construction sites of the project are being constructed simultaneously. The pouring of bridge piers for the Donglonghe Extra Large Bridge and Canxihe Bridge in Shizhu is progressing in an orderly manner. The construction of the roadbed earthwork project at Shizhu East Station is being accelerated, and various work surfaces are working together to create a holiday construction boom. Keywords: Yifu High speed Railway, High speed Railway, Key Projects

High speed rail empowers regional development

Next, the project department will continue to work hard, strengthen safety production management, scientifically allocate personnel and equipment, optimize construction plans, and strive to achieve the year-end construction goal, laying a solid foundation for the timely opening of the Yifu high-speed railway. The Yifu high-speed railway is an important component of the national eight vertical and eight horizontal high-speed railway corridor along the Yangtze River. After the completion of the project, it will significantly shorten the travel time from Sichuan to Chongqing to Central and East China, strengthen regional connectivity, and promote the high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt. The builders' commitment to the front line during holidays is a vivid reflection of the accelerated construction of this major livelihood project.Editor/Gong Ziwei