Following are the ten most beautiful roads selected by the Chinahighway.com last year:
Hangzhou Bay Bridge (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
1. Hangzhou Bay BridgeTotaling 36 kilometers, the Hangzhou Bay Bridge is the longest cross-sea bridge in theworld. Officially opened for traffic on May 1, 2008, it connects the municipality of Shanghaiand Ningbo in Zhejiang province in eastern China
Guoliang Tunnel Road (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
2. Guoliang Tunnel RoadThe Guoliang Tunnel Road was built in the Taihang Mountains of central China's Henanprovince. It took five years to complete, and a few villagers died in accidents during theconstruction. The road is about 1.3 kilometers (0.81 miles) long, 4 meters wide and 5 meters high, which makes the road extremely scary. The tunnel has 30 windows that allowdrivers to enjoy the spectacular view of the Taihang Mountain. The mountain is known as "the long corridor in cliffs." The road is regarded as one of the ten most dangerous roads inthe world
Zhongnan Mountain Tunnel Road (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
3. Zhongnan Mountain Tunnel RoadThe Zhongnanshan (Zhongnan Mountain) tunnel, which passes through the Qinlingmountains in northwest China's Shaanxi province, was opened on Jan. 20, 2007. Thetunnel is equipped with lights in different colors and patterns. Each tunnel is decoratedwith artificial plants as well as images of clouds projected over the ceiling at certain sectionsin order to reduce the eye strain of drivers
Aizhai Winding Road (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
4. Aizhai Winding RoadAizhai Winding Road linking Hunan province and Chongqing municipality is a wonder onNational Road 319 (G319). This 6-kilometer road is built on steep mountains and there are 13 hairpin bends on the way to the top. Although it is dangerous to drive on, this windingroad is quite busy, and drivers often meet traffic jams
Aizhai Suspension Bridge (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
5. Aizhai Suspension BridgeAizhai Suspension Bridge is the world's highest and longest tunnel-to-tunnel suspensionbridge above Dehang Canyon. It is part of National Highway 65 (G65), above AizhaiWinding Road. The bridge is more than 300 meters above the ground. It shortens thejourney between Chongqing and Changsha from several days to just 8 hours
Tongtian Highway (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
6. Tongtian HighwayTongtian Highway, located at the Tianmen Mountain National Forest Park in centralChina's Hunan province, is a winding mountain road to the famous Tianmen Cave on themountain peak. Measuring more than 10 kilometers in length and 200 meters to 1,200 meters above sea level, the road has 99 sharp turns. It took eight years and about 100 million yuan (US$16.2 million) to construct the road. The Tongtian Highway is known asChina's "most spectacular road" for its 99 bends and beautiful scenery along the way
The 24 Zigzags (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
7. The 24 ZigzagsLocated 6 kilometers southwest of Qinglong Town, Qianxi'nan Buyi and Miao AutonomousPrefecture, northwest China's Guizhou Province, the 24 Zigzags was built during WWII totransport supplies to help resist the Japanese invasion. The 4-kilometer-long road has 24 turns, and covers only 350 meters
Tarim Desert Highway (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
8. Tarim Desert HighwayThe Tarim Desert Highway provides the best conditions for travelers to drive across theTaklamakan Desert, "the sea of death". The 552-kilometer-long highway is the world'slongest highway across a shifting-sand desert. Travelers can enjoy the wonderful sceneryof desert and the thousand-year-old populus euphratica forest
Tibet Highways (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
9. Tibet HighwaysThere are four main highways into Tibet: the Sichuan?Tibet Highway, Qinghai?TibetHighway, Yunnan?Tibet Highway, and Xinjiang?Tibet Highway. The Tibet highways areregarded as heaven for cyclists to enjoy the beautiful scenery along the roads
Suhua Highway in Taiwan (Photo/Chinadaily.com.cn)
10. Suhua Highway in TaiwanThe 118-kilometer-long Suhua Highway hugs the cliffs of Taiwan's east coast, from Su'aoTown in Yilan County to Hualian City. The beautiful scenery along the winding road makesit a famous sightseeing road in the world
