Qinghai-Tibet Railway, the world's highest railroad that opened five years ago, has driven unprecedented economic growth on the Tibetan plateau.

Friday marks five years since the railway opened.

The 1,956-km rail link running from Golmud in the northwestern Qinghai Province to Tibet's regional capital Lhasa has transported more than 41 million passengers and 180 million tonnes of cargo since it opened on July 1, 2006.

The railway has proven effective in boosting economic development in both Qinghai Province and Tibet.

Official figures show Qinghai's GDP soared from 64.1 billion yuan (9.9 billion U.S. dollars) in 2006 to 134.2 billion yuan last year.

Meanwhile, Tibet's GDP rose from 34.2 billion yuan to 50 billion yuan, an average annual growth of at least 10 percent.

The railway has brought a surge of tourists, giving a boost to the local tourism, hospitality and manufacturing industries.

BREAKING BARRIERS

The landmark railway has linked Tibet more closely than ever before to the outside world, with sightseers and pilgrims flocking onto the "roof of the world," and plateau products such as herb, yak meat and traditional artwork being sold throughout China and overseas.

Tibet has hosted 21.25 million tourists over the past five years, an annual increase of 30.6 percent. Meanwhile, its tourism revenue totaled 22.6 billion yuan over the same period, up 30 percent annually, according to the regional tourism administration.

Also, neighboring Qinghai Province received more than 50 million tourists and posted at least 26 billion yuan of tourism income from 2006 to 2010.

"The railway has provided a fast and economical means of transportation," said Fu Lin, president of Tibet Glacier Mineral Water Ltd.

The company's mineral water, "5100 Tibetan glacier," has become a name brand across China in recent years. Its name indicates the water is collected at 5,100 meters above sea level.

"Since the railway opened, our annual output has soared from 700 to 300,000 tonnes," said Fu. "Railway transportation cost is about 200 yuan per tonne, half the highway transportation cost."

Other Tibetan beverages, including beer brewed from highland barley and water from the Kunlun Mountain Range, have been sold to the interior provinces and even to Europe and America.

In 2009 alone, Tibet's production of canned and bottled beverages doubled that of the previous year, according to the latest figure available at the regional development and reform commission.

PROMOTING TRADE, COOPERATION

Analysts say the railway has integrated the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau into China's overall economic development program and promoted interprovincial cooperation.

The railway runs through the resource-rich Qaidam Basin, known for its salt lake, petroleum, gas and other mineral resources.

A number of mining companies are seeking to explore resources in the area in a more rational and sustainable way.

Qinghai Province and Tibet are also working together on an industrial park for regional cooperation in developing plateau products, tourism and mineral industries.

The railway, plus its extension from Lhasa to Tibet's second largest city Xigaze -- set to be completed by 2015, will also link Tibet closer with China's south Asian neighbors including India and Nepal.

"Tibet will serve as a pivotal hub linking China's central and western regions with south Asia," said Wang Daiyuan, an economist with Tibet's regional academy of social sciences.

Wang said the railway has brought "profound changes" to Tibet, turning the formerly isolated and underdeveloped region into a trade center.

Tibet's foreign trade hit a record 836 million U.S. dollars last year, twice the 2009 figure, said Ma Xiangcun, the region's commerce chief.

Exports of Tibetan-made products, including herb, wool, cashmere, beverages and building materials, totaled 46.5 million U.S. dollars, 6 percent of its total exports.

Better infrastructure has created a sound investment environment, said Tian Fuli, chief of Tibet's merchants bureau. "A number of Chinese and foreign companies have shifted from the rich eastern regions to the Tibetan plateau for investment purposes."

Over the past five years, Tibet received 19 billion yuan of investment from Chinese and international businesses, he said.