Why bother drilling tunnels when you can simply shave down mountains? That was apparently the philosophy behind the new Lu’an Expressway in China’s mountainous Guizhou Province.

We have already written about the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge, the soon-to-be-inaugurated world’s highest bridge (625 meters or 2,051 feet above the Beipan River Valley), but the expressway running through the mountains of Guizhou and leading to the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge has also been getting a lot of attention lately. Viral videos of the impressive infrastructure project sparked controversy on social media because of the way it was built compared to other roads in the area. Instead of drilling towers through mountains or building around them, Chinese engineers decided to literally slice off mountain faces to make room for the Guizhou Lu’an Expressway.

About 92% of Guizhou Province is made of mountains and cliffs, which makes it a great place to photograph, but a nightmare for commuters. Projects like the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge and Lu’an Expressway are meant to improve things for motorists, but environmentalists have criticized their impact on the local environment. Although planners claim that they had no choice but to slice off mountain peaks to make room for the road, many believe that less extreme options were available.

 

On Reddit, several posts featuring Guizhou Lu’an Expressway sparked heated debates between those in awe of Chinese infrastructure and ingenuity, and those convinced that there were better ways to build it than defacing entire mountains.

For more impressive examples of Chinese infrastructure, check out the spectacular River Highway, and the world’s scariest-looking suspension bridge.