Elevated ideas overcome sand and wind problems

With 65 percent of its length located within Taklimakan — the world's second-largest shifting-sand desert in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region — sand control became the greatest challenge to construction and maintenance of the Hotan-Ruoqiang railway, workers said.

"We had to come up with innovative solutions to overcome those difficulties and such experiences have become great assets for us to build railways in even harsher natural environments," said Pu Falin, manager of the Hotan-Ruoqiang Railway Company, which is responsible for construction of the railway.

Taklimakan is a shifting desert. It is estimated that low sand dunes can move up to 20 meters each year. Frequent sandstorms have also posed a serious threat to the railway since its construction started in December 2018.