The Daliangshan No.1 Tunnel, which is set to open by the end of this year on the Leshan-Xichang Expressway, is not only the longest tunnel in Southwest China but has also won an international award from the global tunneling community.

There have been speculations that the central passage might be a 'VIP lane' reserved for cars, but in reality, it serves as a critical auxiliary structure known as a 'parallel pilot tunnel'. By excavating a 'mini-tunnel' alongside the main tunnel, it essentially creates a secret shortcut. From this shortcut, lateral connections are made to the main tunnel, breaking down the 15.3-kilometer-long tunnel into multiple smaller sections for construction. This 'long tunnel, short drive' method directly saved two years of construction time.

In the future, the journey from Chengdu to Zhaojue will take just 3.5 hours.

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