The Qinghai-Tibet railway is a high-elevation railway line in China between Xining, Qinghai Province, and Lhasa, Tibet. With over 960 km of track being more than 4,000 m above sea level, it is the highest railway line in the world.
The 1,142 km segment from Golmud to Lhasa started construction in 2001 and opened in 2006, making it the first railway line in Tibet, facing extreme altitudes with half the oxygen of sea level and temperatures plummeting to -40°C.
In addition to it being the world's highest railway, the line is also the holder of numerous other records:
The line includes the Tanggula Pass, the highest point on a railway in the world at 5,072 m above sea level, and Tanggula railway station at 5,068 m is the world's highest railway station. The 1,338 m long Fenghuoshan tunnel is the highest rail tunnel in the world at 4,905 m above sea level.
The Xining-Golmud section of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway has been upgraded to High Speed Rail since 2023.
The first High Speed Rail connection to Tibet proper is now under construction on the Sichuan-Tibet Railway with the high-speed rail link from Chengdu to Lhasa planned for completion in 2030, with smaller segments at both ends already completed.
The high-speed segment from Chengdu to Ya’an officially opened in 2018.
The Lhasa to Nyingchi segment was the first high-speed train in Tibet and completed construction in 2021
Once fully completed the 36-hour Chengdu to Lhasa train journey will be shortened to merely 13 hours.