The project will cut a three-hour mountain drive to just 20 minutes.

16:55, Sat, Dec 27, 2025 Updated: 16:56, Sat, Dec 27, 2025

Inside Tianshan Shengli Tunnel

The Tianshan Shengli Tunnel has dramatically cut journey times (Image: Getty)

The world's longest motorway tunnel has been opened. The 22.13-kilometer-long £3billion Tianshan Shengli Tunnel in the Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang, China, is part of the £4.9billion Urumqi-Yuli Expressway, and consists of two parallel tubes, each with two lanes of traffic. Traffic started flowing through it yesterday, as connectivity between the country's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and central Asia is improved.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on social media: "The Urumqi-Yuli Expressway officially opens to traffic! At its heart lies the world’s longest expressway tunnel. At 22 kilometers, it turns a 3-hour mountain drive into 20 minutes. A major leap in connectivity for Xinjiang."

The journey from Urumqi to Korla, Xinjiang's bustling urban centres, is predicted to have been truncated from over seven hours to approximately three hours.

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Chinese Ambassador to the United States, Xie Feng, said: "Making history once again! China just opened the 22.13-km (13.75-mile) Tianshan Victory Tunnel, the world's longest expressway tunnel, across a mountain range in Xinjiang, cutting a several-hour mountain drive down to just 20 minutes."

Chairman of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), Song Hailiang, told CCTV that the project “set two world records”.

They added: “It is the longest expressway tunnel in the world and has the deepest vertical shaft for a highway tunnel.£

Xu Tianchen, an expert from The Economist Intelligence Unit, previosuly highlighted the strategic importance of the tunnel.

Car inside Tianshan Shengli Tunnel

The huge tunnel cost £3billion to build (Image: Getty)

He said the tunnel could be a game-changing infrastructure for Central Asia that would spark increased economic activity, according to The Sun.

The expert said: “Completion will certainly benefit trade and economic growth in the underdeveloped part of Xinjiang.

“Central Asia provides a reasonable return-risk mix, especially with its rich energy reserves and acceptable security situation.”