Yunnan pupils board upgraded aerial school bus for new semester

As the new semester begins, children from Nizhuhe village in Xuanwei, Yunnan province, make their way to school aboard the Fuyao elevator, the second aerial school bus in the Nizhuhe Grand Canyon scenic area. The new transportation method began operations on July 31.

On Sunday, Wang Jiao took the cliffside elevator from Nizhuhe village at the bottom of the canyon to Guanzhai village at the top, followed by a bus ride to Puli township in Xuanwei. After finishing fifth grade at Guanzhai Village Primary School in June, she is now preparing to attend a primary school in the township for her sixth-grade studies.

"In the past, we traveled along mountain paths that were often slick with mud and moss, making them very slippery," Wang said. "The introduction of the elevators has reduced our travel time by about three hours."

Since the launch of the Qingyun elevator in 2022, hailed as the country's first aerial school bus, children in Nizhuhe village no longer have to traverse the dangerous mountain path on foot.

According to Cai Xiong, chairman of Xuanwei Yatuo Tourism Development, the construction company behind the project, the new elevator goes from the bottom to the top in just 50 seconds, which is nearly twice as fast as the Qingyun. It can carry up to 81 passengers at a time, nearly double the capacity.

Zhang Sibo, a teacher at Guanzhai Village Primary School, said that on the first day of the new semester, every student in her class made it to school on time. "Now, the introduction of dual elevators, along with a green channel for students, has made commuting to and from school more efficient."

The Fuyao and Qingyun elevators form China's only dual-elevator aerial school bus system. Their operation has increased the scenic area's daily visitor capacity from 4,000 to 15,000 people, according to the scenic area.