This photo taken on June 30, 2024 shows a scene at a ceremony marking the opening of a high-grade highway linking Lhasa and Xigaze, held in Lhasa, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. A high-grade highway linking the two largest cities in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region officially opened to traffic Sunday, cutting travel time between the cities in half, said the regional transport department.
The highway, linking the regional capital Lhasa and Xigaze, the region's second-largest city, stretches 245 km. The four-lane highway cuts down travel time between Lhasa and Xigaze from about six hours to three hours. So far, the mileage of high-grade highways in Xizang has reached 1,196 km.
The highway is one section of the national highway that links the city of Ya'an in southwest China's Sichuan Province and Yecheng County in the Kashgar Prefecture of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Kalsang Baljor)