The Xi'an-Yan'an High-Speed Rail (XYYR), with a total length of 299.8 kilometers and a design speed of 350 km/h, has completed its comprehensive testing phase and entered trial operations on November 17. Upon full operation, travel time between Xi'an and Yan'an will be reduced from the current 2.5 hours to just about one hour. This marks a historic milestone for the revolutionary base area of northern Shaanxi, which previously lacked true high-speed rail connectivity (Yan'an only had slower-speed trains). Beyond facilitating regional mobility, the XYYR is poised to reshape the economic landscape of northwest China.
The project, first included in China’s 2016 Medium and Long-Term Railway Network Plan as part of the Baotou-Haikou Corridor, faced extraordinary engineering challenges. Traversing the rugged Loess Plateau, the route boasts a 91% bridge-tunnel ratio—among the highest in China’s high-speed rail network—reflecting its complex terrain of deep gullies and mountainous barriers.
Why prioritize such a demanding project? The answer lies in both practical and strategic imperatives. Yan'an, a sacred revolutionary site, has long been hindered by poor transport links despite its political significance. The XYYR breaks this isolation, integrating Yan'an into Xi'an’s "one-hour economic circle" and enabling faster movement of energy resources, agricultural products, and talent. Crucially, it connects northern Shaanxi to the national high-speed rail grid, ensuring the region isn’t left behind in modernization efforts.
The rail line also unlocks opportunities for intermediate cities like Tongchuan—a resource-depleted city seeking transformation—by improving access to investments and industrial relocation. Notably, all five counties along Yan'an’s section will have stations, ensuring broad-based economic benefits.
Moreover, the XYYR doubles as a "Red Tourism Corridor," linking key revolutionary heritage sites such as the Zhaojin Revolutionary Base and Luochuan Conference Memorial. By enabling efficient itineraries (e.g., visiting the Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an and Yan'an’s Pagoda Hill in a single day), it boosts cultural tourism and spurs ancillary industries like hospitality.
Strategically, the XYYR—when linked with the under-construction Xi'an-Chongqing High-Speed Rail—will form Shaanxi’s north-south backbone, amplifying Xi'an’s role as a national central city. It also anchors the broader Western Development Strategy, eventually bridging the China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor with the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle via the Western Land-Sea Corridor.
As trains soon race across the Loess Plateau, the XYYR symbolizes more than steel tracks—it carries the aspirations of revolutionary base communities and embodies China’s push for balanced regional growth and shared prosperity. Yan’an, no longer remote, stands ready to greet the world.
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