First Major Long‑Distance Tunnel on Huangtong‑Baise Railway Breaks Through

According to Guangxi Transportation Investment Group Co., Ltd, the Leye Tunnel on the Huangtong‑Baise railway was holed through safely on 21 September 2026, marking the breakthrough of the first long tunnel completed along the whole railway route.

The scheme is a landmark infrastructure project for the New International Land‑Sea Trade Corridor. Located within Xinhua Town, Leye County in Baise, Guangxi, Leye Tunnel stretches for 7042 metres. 

It ranks among the eleven long tunnels planned for the Guangxi section of the line. Situated close to Leye railway station, the tunnel portal end accommodates three tracks to improve dispatching capacity at the station. 

With an excavation width reaching 22 metres, it represents the largest cross‑section tunnel on the Guangxi stretch of the project.

Huangtong‑Baise Railway Co., Ltd worked together with all participating construction contractors to refine working procedures and strengthen on‑site management throughout the building phase. 

To tackle unstable ground conditions within soft surrounding rock for this wide excavation, construction teams adopted the cross‑diaphragm construction method. The large tunnel profile was split into several smaller independent chambers. 

Each chamber received immediate support and closed‑ring reinforcement after excavation, which lessened disturbance to surrounding rock and resolved technical difficulties caused by poor structural stability and overlapping working procedures. 

Four separate working faces were advanced simultaneously, delivering a monthly driving progress of roughly 270 metres. Real‑time video surveillance and toxic‑gas monitoring systems inside the tunnel kept the whole construction process under continuous oversight.

The Huangtong‑Baise railway is scheduled to open for traffic in 2028. Once finished, the new rail link will offer a quicker transport corridor connecting northern Guizhou and the Beibu Gulf coastal zone in Guangxi.