The Golmud-Lhasa section of the Qinghai-Tibet railway will start unmanned test runs from May 1 in preparation for its trial operation on July 1.

Sources from China's Ministry of Railways said in Beijing on Thursday that the country will complete the construction of a number of key railway projects with an investment of 34 billion yuan (about US$4 billion) in the second quarter this year, including the opening of the Qinghai-Tibet railway.

Built on the "Roof of the World" and zigzagging across 5,000-meter-high mountain ranges and a 550-km-long frozen belt, the Qinghai-Tibet railway is the first railway in Tibet, aiming at building a closer tie between the plateau with other parts of China.

According to the ministry, besides the Qinghai-Tibet railway, construction of other major railways will also be accelerated during the second quarter, including the Beijing-Tianjin inter-city track project.

The ministry also urges that the electrified renovation of the Beijing-Shanghai railway should be completed before July 1.

Ministry statistics show that the country has completed the construction of railway projects with an investment of 24 billion yuan (about US$3 billion) in the first quarter this year, 2.8 times more than that of the same period of last year.

(Xinhua News Agency April 14, 2006)