Railways that connect people to the Roof of the World

Added: 2026-05-28

[00:00:00]This is the Lhasa Railway Station and it connects people to the roof of the world. 20 years ago this was almost unthinkable. A railway crossing frozen grounds, oxygen thin air and mountains over 5,000 m high and China builds it literally above the clouds.

[00:00:21]Welcome to the heart of Asia. It's Shington here.

[00:00:24]The Qinghai-Tibet Railway stretches over 1,900 km from Xining to Lhasa. But the true engineering achievements lies is how the railway was constructed. Engineers had to overcome the challenge of building across vast areas of permafrost ground that constantly freezes and it thaws.

[00:00:43]And today this line has completely transformed travel into Xizang from isolation to access. Journeys that once took days can now be made by train safely and comfortably and even at extreme altitudes. Over the past 20 years the railway has carried out more than 40 million passenger trips and transported [music] over 100 million tons of cargo. Train services have increased from just the five pairs to 17 today cutting logistics costs by around a 60%.

[00:01:14]Inside these trains pressurized cabins and onboard oxygen systems keep passengers safe at high altitude. The railway has also been upgraded with a continuously [music] welded tracks.

[00:01:26]And this line is still evolving bringing China's Fuxing high-speed train fleets [music] all the way here.