Well done Chinese! The largest bridge that other countries only dream of
According to Business Insider, China is launching multiple megaprojects that will alter its transportation system.
China intends to draw 250 million people (29 times more than New Yorkers) to the country’s expanding metropolitan centres during the next decade. To deal with this massive influx, the country has committed tens of billions of dollars in massive infrastructural projects.
China opened the world’s longest bridge, connecting Macao and Hong Kong to Zhuhai, China’s southernmost metropolis.
The facility’s construction was finished after a several-year delay.
The project will cost more than $20 billion when completed in 2021.
The bridge is 55 kilometres long in total, including a 7-kilometer underwater tunnel that connects the manmade islands.
The main bridge is over 30 kilometres long, with three lanes in each direction for traffic. The bridge, dubbed a «engineering marvel,» is comprised of 420,000 tonnes of steel, enough to construct 60 Eiffel Towers.
Some parts are somewhat slanted.
Construction has been underway since 2009, while taking into account environmental standards to avoid harming the region’s marine species.
The tunnel and the parts with cable-stayed bridges were developed to allow high-capacity seagoing boats to pass.
The photo below, taken in 2012, depicts artificial islands erected by China for a bridge near Lantau Island in Hong Kong.
The project has sparked debate because to its exorbitant cost, development delays, allegations of corruption, and worker safety concerns. Two workers were killed, while 19 others were charged with faking test results.
The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge project will cut travel time in half.
The bridge will be used by around 40,000 cars every day, including buses that run every 10 minutes.
Taxis will not be permitted, and private cars will only be permitted with specific permissions. Pedestrians are not permitted to enter.
It should be noted that China now leads the globe in the construction of the longest bridge structures. The Danyang-Kunshan Viaduct in China, for example, is 165 kilometres long, while the Tianjin Viaduct is 113 kilometres long.
Until the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge is completed, the longest sea bridge in operation is the 42.5 km Qingdao Bay Bridge. The Vasco da Gama Bridge, erected over the Tagus River in Lisbon (Portugal), is the longest in Europe, measuring 17.2 km with a surface length of 10 kilometres.
