Self-driving "net celebrity" who was "blocked crying" and turned into a garbage dump: How beautiful is the Duku Highway?

Source: The Paper

September 2021 On the 19th, Xinjiang Bayingoleng Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, aerial photography of the red stone forest on the Duku Highway.

Recently, with the release of multiple favorable policies, the tourism popularity of Xinjiang has soared. Duku Highway, as a must-see road for self-driving in Xinjiang, has also been hotly searched due to “blocking”. Netizens said: “There are finally more people on the grasslands than sheep.”

After that, #Please don’t let the Duku Highway become a garbage dump# was on the hot search.

Duku Highway becomes a “clogging” highway?

The Duku Highway, known as “there are four seasons in one day, and different days in ten miles”, was officially reopened to traffic on June 10 this year after being closed for eight months.

Duku Highway has a total length of 561 kilometers, connecting southern Xinjiang and northern Xinjiang, crossing the Tianshan Mountains. Due to natural factors such as snowfall and icing on the roads in the Tianshan Mountains in winter, the highway is only open for 5 months in summer, usually from June to October.

The scene of traffic jam on Duku Highway taken by netizens. Image source: Internet

Doku taken by netizens Road traffic jam scene. Image source: Internet

Early July coincides with the eve of Eid al-Adha, and the traffic flow increases significantly. On July 9, the traffic volume of Duku Highway reached 28,000, more than 5 times the designed traffic volume.

At the special press conference of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region held on the 22nd, some tourists reported the traffic jam on Duku Highway (217 National Road). The local government has attached great importance to it and adopted a number of measures to quickly solve the congestion problem on the Duku Highway.

On the Duku Highway, there will also be sheep in transition.

July 10, 2019, Xinjiang Duku Highway (217 National Road) , the herdsmen drove herds of sheep around. Infographic

July 10, 2019, Xinjiang Duku Highway (National Highway 217), herdsmen drove flocks of sheep to turn around. Data Map

Please don’t let Duku Highway become a garbage dump

Many netizens said they saw garbage everywhere on the Duku Highway in Xinjiang. Food bags and plastic bottles were randomly discarded on the roadside and on the grass; some tourists noticed that cattle and sheep had eaten garbage bags. Well-meaning tourists took the bags and picked up five big bags, but they couldn’t finish them all.

On July 24, the official public account of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Department of Culture and Tourism “Xinjiang is a good place” issued an appeal: “Please! No! Yes! Let the Duku Highway become a garbage dump.”

Netizens photographed calves eating garbage bags on the grass. Image source: Internet

Netizens photographed Duku Highway Garbage all over the place. Image source: Internet

How beautiful is the Duku Highway?

Experience the beauty of China on a road trip.

The beautiful Duku Highway runs through the ridge of the Tianshan Mountains and is rated as one of the “most beautiful highways in China”.

The total length of the highway is 561 kilometers. There is no shortage of scenery on the road, including snow-capped mountains, forests, grasslands, lakes, canyons, Danxia and other beautiful scenery. It is a tourist destination in the hearts of many self-driving tourists.