China has some of the most impressive pieces of infrastructure in the world, including suspended roads passing through the middle of rivers, or sky highways traversing narrow mountain ridges, but when it comes to challenging roads, there are few as frightening as Wuxi’s Token Stone Road.
Squeezed between two large cliffs, in southwestern China’s Wuxi County, the Lingpaishi zigzag road connects the small Tian Ping Community to the outside world. The road is only 3.7 kilometers (2.29miles) long, running from Tianping Village to 201 Provincial Road, and the zigzag section measures just 453 meters, but that’s enough to challenge even the most experienced drivers.
Built in 2012 and paved in 2019, Chongqing’s unique zigzag road requires vehicles to move very slowly and navigate each sharp turn with caution. Not only is the road incredibly narrow, making turning back impossible, but the gradient can reach 36% on the steepest slopes.
Luckily, the Tian Ping Community is made up of just 137 people from 37 people, so the zigzag road connecting it to the outside world is rarely crowded, which helps drivers better navigate its twists and turns.
Wuxi’s Token Stone Road is closed to trucks, buses, and vehicles towing large caravans because they simply cannot tackle its narrow zigzag pattern, and even small vehicles can only do so using the space on the corners specifically created for that purpose.
Because of its extreme steepness, the zigzag section of Lingpaishi Road should only be navigated in 1st gear.
