LHASA, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- Highway mileage in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region reached over 97,000 kilometers last year, the regional transport authority said Wednesday.

Yumgye, head of the regional transportation department, said that the region invested more than 65 billion yuan (9.6 billion U.S. dollars) in transportation in 2018, with an increase of 14.6 percent year-on-year.

Tibet built over 8,000 kilometers of highways last year, bringing the entire highway mileage of the region to 97,400 kilometers, Yumgye said.

In 2019, the region will implement nearly 55 billion yuan of transportation investment, with a big chunk provided by the central government.

Tibet plans to build 2,100 kilometers of highways this year.

Tibet will strive to make highways reach all townships and administrative villages by 2020 in a bid to boost rural development.