In ancient times, it was the starting point of a trans-Himalayan caravan route. Newar traders headed north from Kodari and after crossing Kuti pass turned east to continue their journey across the Tibetan Plateau to Lhasa.
China built the 115 kilometres (71 mi) Kathmandu-Kodari Road, since named Araniko Highway, during the 1963-67 period. As of 2011, Nepal is planning to convert the two lane highway to a six lane metalled highway.It connects across the Sino-Nepal Friendship Bridge at the border to Friendshp Highway in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China.
China started building a railway in 2008 connecting Lhasa with Zhangmu on the Nepal-China border. It is an extension of the 1,956 kilometres (1,215 mi) Qinghai-Tibet
