The world's deepest and largest high-speed railway station will come up at a popular section of the Great Wall in China. This is part of the country's efforts to prepare for the 2022 Winter Olympics.
The station will be built at Badaling, which is one of the most visited sections of the Great Wall of China, located 50 miles (around 80km) northwest of Beijing, the Chinese state media reported. The site received 30,000 tourists in one day during the Chinese New Year holiday week.
"The Badaling station will be located 102 meters (335 feet) below the surface, with an underground construction area of 36,000 square meters (387,501 sq feet), equal to five standard soccer fields, making it the deepest and largest high-speed railway station in the world," Chen Bin, director in charge of construction for China Railway No 5 Engineering Group, said, as reported by Reuters.
The rail station will be located between a railway network, which would link the cities of Beijing and Zhangjiakou (the city that would host the Winter Olympics).
According to the plan, the Badaling station will run through mountains under the Great Wall and will require the use of advanced explosion technologies to ensure that the UNESCO World Heritage Site will not be affected, the railways group was quoted as saying by the agency.
China has set ambitious railway construction plans, which include building the world's longest high-speed line between Beijing and Guangzhou.
