China will allocate 6.2 billion yuan (US$757 million) for continuing the construction of the Qinghai-Tibet railway this year, said an official with the construction headquarters Tuesday.

This year, the project would continue 340 kilometers in length, build 1,532 bridge arches and lay communication and electricity cables along the entire railway, said Lu Chunfang, head of the headquarters.

The Qinghai-Tibet railway, from Xining, capital city of northwest China's Qinghai Province, to Lhasa, capital city of Tibet, will traverse 1,925 kilometers throughout the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. An 815 km section from Xining to Golmud of Qinghai opened to traffic in 1984.

Construction of the 1,080-km section from Golmud to Lhasa started in late June 2001. The main part of the project is scheduled for completion at the end of this year. To date, the country has spent 13.12 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion) in completing 364 kilometers and 1,406 arches of bridges.

(Xinhua News Agency April 6, 2004)