Abstract Rock burst is a difficult and urgent problem during the construction process of underground engineering in a zone with high surrounding rock pressure. Pressure relief blasting is one of the most effective methods for solving the problem. An in-situ blasting test was carried out in a tunnel under excavation, and the geology stress (geo-stress) of the surrounding rock was tested before and after the pressure relief blasting. The experimental results will be effective for further study of the law of pressure relief blasting and rock-burst prediction. An explicit stress analytic function is also employed to analyze the stress distribution of the tunnel surrounding rock after pressure relief blasting based on the propagation of the blasting stress wave. Furthermore, the stress attenuation coefficient and the variation of the geo-stress distribution of surrounding rock under the pressure relief blasting were discussed in detail with the in-situ blasting test data. Highlights. The main contribution of this paper is focused on: 1. This study measures the in-situ geo-stress of surrounding rock in the ‘Sang zhu ling’ tunnel, both before and after the pressure relief blasting. This data is crucial for ensuring the safety resilience of urban infrastructure. 2. A two-dimensional explicit equation of stress attenuation was derived based on the characteristics of stress propagation, providing a more accurate analytical tool for engineers and researchers, 3. The traditionally obtained stress attenuation coefficient is shown to require modification through further in-situ experiments. Future studies will refine this coefficient, contributing to the development of more reliable methods for safeguarding urban lifelines. These contributions align with the journal’s focus on advancing urban science and engineering by promoting innovative, data-driven solutions for urban safety.