The Motuo Highway is about to be fully completed, and tourism will become a key economic driver for Motuo.
According to sources from relevant departments in Motuo County, once the highway opens to traffic, Motuo County will become one of the most challenging and attractive tourist destinations in Tibet. With its rich flora and fauna and unique geological formations, Motuo has become a hotspot for scientific research, adventure, and tourism. Among China’s top ten golden trekking routes, Motuo is the top recommendation, along with five major scenic areas including the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon. To create a culturally immersive experience in Motuo, a Monba and Lhoba cultural performance troupe will be formed to showcase traditional instruments, folk songs, and dances, helping future generations better understand and preserve authentic Monba and Lhoba culture. The region’s favorable geography and climate also make Motuo one of Tibet’s renowned winter retreats. It never snows in winter, offering a natural oxygen bar.
“This will also be one of the distinctive tourism features we aim to develop,” said a representative from the Motuo County Tourism Bureau. Currently, Motuo plans to establish one Lhoba folk culture village and two Monba folk culture villages. The Monba villages include the Dexing Folk Culture Village and the Motuo Folk Culture Village. These two villages have already formed performing arts teams and incorporate traditional Monba costumes into their shows. Additionally, to highlight the ecological brand and boost tourism, efforts will focus on building a self-drive campsite in Bêbang Township, developing rural guesthouses in Bêbang and Dexing townships, establishing tourist service stations in Lagê and Hanmi, and planning to make Xironggou the county’s sixth major scenic area.
The completion and opening of the Motuo Highway will significantly improve transportation conditions and strengthen connections with the outside world, which is expected to spur the growth of tourism and other industries along the route, as well as the development and utilization of local resources. At the same time, demand for social infrastructure along the highway will rise. To meet these needs, greater emphasis will be placed on energy, communications, culture, entertainment, education, and healthcare—areas that will become key investment priorities. Among them, tourism is set to become the biggest economic growth driver for Motuo.
Avalanche rescue workers clear the road; laborers build retaining walls in the snow. The approximately 117-kilometer-long Motuo Highway is nearing final acceptance. Yesterday, reporters learned that the renovation and reconstruction project of the Motuo Highway has entered its final stages. Once completed, the annual road accessibility period will increase from the previous 3–4 months to 8–9 months. Currently, the highway is ready for use, and under normal conditions, driving from Bomi County to Motuo County takes just 3–4 hours.
It is understood that although the Motuo Highway spans 117 kilometers, its annual rainfall can reach up to 5,000 millimeters, leading to frequent mudslides and landslides. As a result, damaged sections could only be accessed by pack animals like mules and horses, while drivable sections were barely three meters wide—just enough for a small car. After comprehensive reconstruction, which included roadbed widening, surface repairs, and tunnel boring, the highway has been expanded to 4.5–8 meters in width. The accessible period has increased from 3–4 months to 8–9 months, and under normal conditions, driving from Bomi to Motuo now takes only 3–4 hours.
“Actually, driving from Bomi to Motuo normally takes only about three hours, but due to weather factors, the Motuo Highway often experiences natural disasters such as landslides and mudslides, causing frequent traffic jams—sometimes delays last up to 8–9 hours. After this reconstruction, we implemented mudslide mitigation measures on high-risk sections, built a 51-meter steel bridge at Manggei Gully, and installed 11-meter-high diversion weirs on both sides of the bridge. These allow mudslides to be directly channeled into the river, preventing road damage,” explained Tsering Paljor, head of the steel bridge project at Tibet Tianshun Road & Bridge Company. He noted that the bridge construction section is now fully completed.
A representative from the Motuo Highway Project Department under the Nyingchi Prefecture Transportation Bureau told reporters that before reconstruction, the Motuo Highway was typically only passable from mid-August to mid-October. This project bored through the Galongla Snow Mountain and constructed the Galongla Tunnel, greatly improving accessibility and disproving the saying that the Motuo Highway was “open to the south but blocked to the north, open to the north but blocked to the south.” It is reported that upon completion, the project will benefit over 10,000 residents along the route. It also plays a crucial role in consolidating national defense, safeguarding national security, and promoting ethnic unity. This achievement fulfills the long-standing national goal of connecting every county by road and realizes a millennium-long aspiration of the Motuo people. It marks a significant milestone in China’s highway construction history.
Sources from Motuo County revealed that transportation limitations have hindered economic and social development, keeping farming practices traditional and primitive, and leading to shortages of goods and exorbitant prices. Once the Motuo Highway is officially open, prices of certain goods in Motuo County are expected to drop by around 50%. “For example, before the highway, a regular bottle of Lhasa beer cost 10–20 yuan (during heavy snowfall periods around Lunar New Year, prices peaked at 20 yuan). After the highway opens, the price will fall to 6 yuan—only 1 yuan more than in Bomi County. In the past, transporting supplies to Motuo required waiting for the mountain passes to open. The government had to set up supply transfer stations en route, where outsiders delivered goods, which were then carried in by people or animals. During the closed season, a single brick carried in on foot could sell for 15 yuan, a jin (500g) of rice for 20 yuan, and even during the open season, hard-to-transport pork cost 20–30 yuan per jin. An egg could go for several yuan.”
“A can of food cost 20 yuan, a pack of Hongtashan cigarettes 20 yuan, a chicken 150 yuan, a plate of stir-fried potato slices 25 yuan, and a plate of potato and meat stir-fry 50 yuan,” a Motuo County government worker told reporters. Due to the lack of roads and vehicle access, essential living supplies and construction materials had to be carried in by humans and Animals from Zhaxi Town in Bomi County or Pai Town in Linzhi County every spring after the snow melted. Transporters faced threats from leeches, mosquitoes, venomous snakes, and fierce wildlife, as well as dangers like avalanches. Many mules and horses died from exhaustion, and numerous people lost their lives to natural disasters on these treacherous routes. The newly reconstructed Motuo Highway will dramatically improve transportation conditions, reduce shipping costs, curb high prices, bring daily living expenses back to normal levels, and lead to significant improvements in medical care and education.
Motuo County’s economy is primarily agricultural, producing crops like rice, finger millet, soybeans, cotton, sesame, bananas, and mangoes. Handicrafts include Bangqiong, Youjiu, rattan weaving, Xiucha, Xiusigong, and stone pots. Notable specialties include gastrodia elata, notoginseng, deer antler, musk, hedgehog hydnum, picrorhiza, and hundreds of wild fruits. Animal husbandry plays a minor role, while forestry and sideline economies are largely subsistence-based. With the highway’s completion, the production and lifestyle of Motuo residents will be fundamentally transformed. Traditional farming methods will gradually give way to advanced techniques, and local specialty products will reach external markets, becoming an important source of income.
Mr. Li, who has worked in Motuo for a long time, told reporters that due to its unique geography and climate, Motuo boasts abundant vegetation, including Tibetan medicinal herbs like picrorhiza, fruits like plantains, and rare timber like golden nanmu. Once the Motuo Highway opens, these locally produced agricultural products, Tibetan medicines, and Monba handicrafts can be transported to markets, boosting local incomes. Meanwhile, the highway will attract more tourists, spurring economic growth, improving living standards, and advancing tourism in the region.
The Motuo Highway reconstruction project is set to officially open on the 31st. To witness the opening of the “only administrative county in China without a highway,” multiple media outlets will gather in Motuo for coverage, while many hikers, self-drivers, and sightseers are also flocking to the area. Currently, Motuo’s accommodation capacity has reached its limit—the shortage of lodging is the biggest challenge, as all hotels, guesthouses, hostels, and even rural homestays are fully booked. Beyond lodging, dining has also become an issue. Authorities advise travelers to avoid visiting Motuo in the near term to prevent inconveniences such as difficulty finding accommodations or meals.