Oct.31, 2023 -- Today is the 10th anniversary of the completion of a highway from Bomi County to Motuo, in the southeast of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. The construction of the road marks the end of the region's isolation from the rest of the world. Our three-part series covers the changes in Motuo over the past decade. CGTN's Guo Tianqi visits a villager, who used to be a porter, but now has his own trucking business thanks to the infrastructure construction. 

 

Gama Pingcuo's former home, Duka village, is located in the north of Motuo County, deep in the Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon. Before the road was completed, residents could only reach the town area by foot. The 50 kilometer journey would usually take 3 days.

 

GAMA PINGCUO Dolonggang Village, Motuo County "At the end of September, there was an avalanche on the Xuewala mountain, and many of us were buried. We were so lucky to survive. I never want to go over that mountain again."

 

Motuo is surrounded by mountains on three sides, if you entered from Bomi County in the north, you had to climb over Galongla Mountain, and the narrowest part the road was only 30 centimeters wide.

 

To enter from Linzhi City in the west, you had to climb over a 4 thousand meter high snow-capped mountain.

 

GUO TIANQI Motuo County, Xizang Autonomous Prefecture "This is Laohuzui Tunnel, in English, the tiger's mouth, indicating the danger of the road. It used to be a narrow trail on the cliff edge, that people and livestock could only walk around. Now, following completion of the tunnel, it takes only four hours to drive from Linzhi city to Motuo county, a journey that used to take more than 4 days on foot."

 

10 years ago, the Motuo road in Tibet was opened to traffic, and the road construction also brought opportunities for villagers. In 2019, Gama Pingcuo became a truck driver. He also bought a bulldozer to use in road construction projects.

 

GAMA PINGCUO Dolonggang Village, Motuo County "Our truck is busy all day. We have so many orders, we are hiring someone else to drive it."

 

In 2019, Duolonggang Village set up a truck transport team, which increased the village's income by more than 3 million yuan through centralized organizing and dispatching.

 

JIA NA Gama Pingcuo's wife "I believe our future will get better and better. When we repay the loan of the excavator, we want to go on a trip together."

 

Because of the difficult conditions, construction of Motuo road took more than 50 years. Through a northern route, it is now connected to China's national highway network going all the way to the coast, and the rest of the country.