At 9:16 a.m. on July 12, Jiangxi Province's key project, the Pinglian Expressway, received great news: the Lianhua Tunnel was safely and successfully bored through on both tubes, marking the full completion of the Pinglian Expressway's main line and signaling that the expressway is about to open to traffic.

The Pinglian Expressway is about 75.2 km long, designed for a speed of 80 km/h, and built to a two-way, four-lane standard. It is a rapid corridor in western Jiangxi and an important part of the province's expressway network. The Lianhua Tunnel has a left tube 3,210 meters long and a right tube 3,220 meters long; it is an extra-long highway tunnel with geological conditions rarely seen in China.

According to reports, the Lianhua Tunnel is known as the "Jiangxi Geological Museum" because of its extremely complex geology. During excavation, it repeatedly encountered water inrush, mud bursts, collapses, solution cavities, large deformations and other hazards and problems, which also brought construction to a halt.

It is understood that the Pinglian Expressway will be completed and opened to traffic by the end of September 2021. After opening, travel time from Lianhua to Pingxiang will be shortened by half an hour.