Lijiang–Shangri-La railway

The Lijiang–Shangri-la railway (Chinese: 丽江至香格里拉铁路; pinyin: Lìjiāng Zhì Xiānggélǐlā tiělù)^[1] or Lixiang railway (Chinese: 丽香铁路; pinyin: Lìxiāng tiělù), is an electrified railway in Yunnan Province of Southwest China. The shorthand name of the line is named after its two terminal cities, Lijiang and Shangri-la. The railway opened on 26 November 2023.^[1][2]

The railway runs 139 km (86 mi) from Lijiang railway station of the Dali–Lijiang railway, north to Shangri-la in northwestern Yunnan.^[3] It will have a design speed of 140 kilometres per hour (87 mph).^[4]

Despite approval of the project's feasibility plans by the NDRC in May 2009, construction did not begin until July 22, 2014.^[5] At the time, construction was expected to take six years.^[5] It was subsequently expected to open by the end of 2021.^[6] The railway opened on 26 November 2023,^[1] with delays caused by flooding and landslips in the complex geological conditions.^[7]