On October 18, 2007, the final section of a railway windbreak
wall was completed in south Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
Finished two days ahead of schedule, the wall is expected to
provide an effective shield against wind for trains that run
between Zhenzhuquan and Hongshanqu. The China Railway 15th
Construction Bureau is in charge of the project. Tianshan.net.cn
reported from Xinjiang.
The newly built windbreak wall extends a total length of 8,230
meters.? A forty-meter section was built with state-of-the-art
technology that had never been used in China before. This section
of the windbreak wall is expected to provide safety shelter for
both the railway and the highway.
The windbreak wall was constructed under extremely difficult
conditions. After the project began on August 20, the work team
encountered winds on 18 days out of the total 58. Over half of the
work period the surface temperature on the construction site
remained above 40 degrees centigrade.
Because of the busy traffic between Zhenzhuquan and Hongshanqu,
train service was not halted during construction. The construction
team worked out a series of precautionary measures to ensure the
workers' safety. Furthermore, when construction took place along
the highway, the project team managers kept in close contact with
local traffic authorities in charge of the temporary traffic
control near the construction site. Previously, optical cables had
been laid underground along the railway. To build this windbreak
wall, the project team worked together with relevant departments
and relocated the cables off site.
The windbreak wall is of great significance toward the safe
operation of the railway in south Xinjiang. The project team
accepted a tight timetable in order to complete the wall as early
as possible. Headed by energetic and experienced engineers, they
worked day and night and managed to build up the high quality wall
two days ahead of schedule.
Trains running between Zhenzhuquan and Hongshanqu are constantly
struck by hurricane-force winds combined with sand and stones.
After the entire windbreak wall has been constructed passengers
will enjoy a safer and more comfortable trip in south Xinjiang
Uygur Autonomous Region.
(China.org.cn by Chen Xia, October 25, 2007)
