Where does the Ya-Ye Expressway run from and to?
2 Answers
The Ya-Ye Expressway runs from Ya'an in Sichuan Province to Yecheng in Xinjiang. It is one of the east-west horizontal routes in China's national expressway network and is classified as a long-term prospective route. The expressway primarily passes through the following regions: Ya'an, Tianquan, Luding, Kangding, Litang, Markam, Baxoi, Nyingchi, Lhasa, Shigatse, Gar, and Yecheng, spanning three provincial-level administrative regions: Sichuan Province, Tibet Autonomous Region, and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The Ya-Ye Expressway serves as a vital corridor connecting the Chengdu Plain with the Ganzi Tibetan area and further extending to Tibet. After its opening, the travel time from Chengdu to Kangding was reduced to just three and a half hours, nearly half the previous duration. To prevent driver fatigue during prolonged tunnel driving, the Ya-Kang Expressway section implements alarm sirens in the Erlangshan Tunnel and Laba River Tunnel Group during key daily periods (12:00-14:00 and 1:00-5:00 AM) to forcibly enhance driver alertness.
I've driven on the Ya-Ye Expressway twice. This highway is actually a major expressway connecting Ya'an in Sichuan to Yecheng in Xinjiang, with a total length of nearly 4,000 kilometers. Last year, I set off from Chengdu in an SUV. When passing through Kangding, the snow-capped mountains were right outside the window. The section near Litang reaches an altitude of nearly 4,000 meters, so you have to drive slower. The most thrilling part was the stretch from Xinduqiao to Batang—lots of curves but absolutely stunning scenery. A reminder for self-driving friends: watch out for altitude sickness, switch to snow tires in winter, and fill up your tank in advance since gas stations are few and far between in the Ganzi area.
