'Sky school bus' facilitates Yunnan rural children's journey to school

'Sky school bus' facilitates the rural children's journey to school in Xuanwei City, southwest China's Yunnan Province.

China has pledged to continue to boost the development of its vast rural areas. A recently released official document vows to prioritize improved infrastructure, and in some areas, such efforts have already made a difference. In a remote village in southwest China, the lives of local residents, especially students, have been transformed by a unique project known as the sky school bus. Our reporter Yang Jinghao takes us there.

It's the first day of the new semester. Like those in other areas, children in this small village are heading back to school. But their journey is unlike any other. After a scenic train ride, they ascend 268 meters in a cliffside elevator and then glide high above the canyon in a cable car before finally reaching their school.

LEI XIN, Elementary School Student "With the elevator, it's much more convenient and saves a lot of time. And riding the cable car feels like going down a slide. I'm really happy."

This is Nizhuhe village, nestled at the bottom of a canyon in Xuanwei City, southwest China's Yunnan Province. For centuries, it remained isolated and impoverished.

ZHAO SUZHEN, Local Villager "Back then, if we needed to go to town, we had to get up around 4 a.m. It took us over two hours to climb to the top of the mountain, and we had to get there before 7:30 to catch the bus."

And you can imagine how challenging it was for schoolchildren.

YANG JINGHAO, Xuanwei City, Yunnan Province "For many years, this was how local children traveled to school, winding through steep cliffs on these narrow, zigzagging trails."

Twelve-year-old Lei Youyou still shudders at the thought of those days.

LEI YOUYOU, Junior High School Student "The scariest time was during a flood. There was a section where we had to step on a large rock to cross, but it was completely submerged. One slip, and we could have fallen straight off the cliff. That day, my grandma came to get me. She pulled out grass from the side to clear a path so we could make our way home."

A turning point came in 2017. As part of the poverty alleviation efforts, the local government introduced a tourism project. By 2022, the elevator and the cableway were up and running, offering free access to villagers.

Cai Xiong, a native of the region, is a major investor in the project.

CAI XIONG, Entrepreneur "When I was in elementary and middle school, I really wanted to leave this place. Seeing this change now brings back memories of my childhood. I'm really happy. It feels like a weight has been lifted from my heart."

Today, the canyon is attracting an increasing number of tourists, creating new opportunities for locals through businesses like restaurants and homestays.

YANG JIE, Party Secretary, Puli Township, Xuanwei City "We have excellent tourism resources here. In addition to the grand canyon, we also have vast grasslands and thousands of hectares of azaleas. We will speed up the development of all-area tourism to drive growth across the entire township."

Now the children look toward a world full of possibilities.

CHEN HONGHAN, Elementary School Student "When I grow up, I want to open a hospital here so that elderly people won't have to travel to the city for treatment when they are sick."

For them, without the confinement of the mountains, no journey is too far, and no dream is out of reach. YJH, CGTN, Xuanwei, Yunnan Province.