Balang Shan (Road Pass)

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  • Longitude: 31.012925
  • Latitude: 102.926102
  • Altitude: 4523m
  • Balang Shan.JPG
  • balang shan road sign.jpg

This 4523m high road pass lies on the main route between Chengdu and Siguniang Shan, between Wolong and Rilong. The road has been under almost continual repair and improvement for some time and was closed to all or some traffic for all or some hours of the day for much of 2007. Before the 12th May 2008 earthquake the road had been mostly regraded and was passable with care in almost any vehicle. Drainage and barrier work was still ongoing with much of the road unsurfaced. Some new bridges and tunnels were incomplete, with the original unimproved road being used as an alternative.

At the time of writing (August 2008) the road is still closed and impassible following the earthquake. Repair efforts are underway, but for the foreseeable future traffic is being diverted via Ya'an and Jiajin Shan

The road is regularly closed during Winter and bad weather. Alternative routes run via Ya'an and Jiajin Shan (also a high pass and in poor condition), or the much longer but lower and better maintained Wenchuan / Ma'erkang route. The public buses from Chengdu to Xiaojin take the Ma'erkang route in winter.

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