Qinghai-Tibet Railway Set To Begin Trial Operations

DANGXIONG COUNTY, TIBET - JUNE 30: A Tibetan man stands guard on a bridge on the newly built Qinghai-Tibet Railway on June 30, 2006, in Dangxiong County, Tibetan Autonomous Region, China.The Qinghai-Tibet railway will begin trial operations on July 1, a schedule has been set for the first five trains to Tibet via the new railway, an official with the Qinghai-Tibet Railway Company said. The 1,956-kilometer-long (1,215 miles) Qinghai-Tibet railway, linking Xining, capital of Qinghai Province, with Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region, is the world's highest and longest plateau railroad and also the first railway connecting Tibet with other parts of China. Some 960 kilometers (576 miles) of its track are located 4,000 meters (13,120 feet) above sea level and the highest point is 5,072 meters (16,636 feet), according to state media. (Photo by Cancan Chu/Getty Images)