Meter-Gage Railway in Kunming

In April 1910, the Yunnan-Vietnam Railway begun to traffic operations from Haiphong, Vietnam to Kunming, China. This international railway links coastal ports and inland China's southwestern region.

The Yunnan-Vietnam Railway is called by the British Daily as the third largest project in the world comparable to the Suez Canal and Panama Canal. It is the deepest memory in the hearts of Kunming people and the witness of Kunming City's transformation from a border town into an international metropolis.

Yunnan-Vietnam Railway is the first railway in Yunnan, it is a mountainous railway. The construction project of Yunnan-Vietnam Railway is very difficult to describe, it is full of hardships and dangers.

The operation of Yunnan-Vietnam Railway have made Kunming become the largest foreign trade port in Yunnan. It also help to break the original, closed and backward economic situation of Kunming, and further strengthened and improved the process of modern civilization.

If you want to know more about the history of railway in Yunnan, the Yunnan Railway Museum is a ideal place. Yunnan Railway Museum was constructed based on waiting room of Kunming North Railway Station. Opened in 2004, mainly displayed the history of Kunming Railway development, particularly metre-gauge railways. In the Yunnan Railway Museum there are a well-preserved “Michelin” internal combustion trains and SN-type 29-inch steam locomotive.