Recently, several major transportation projects in the Yangtze River Delta have made consecutive new progress.
On November 14, the first layer of concrete for the lower crossbeam and tower column connection segment of Pier 3 of the Chongqi Railway-Road Yangtze River Bridge, connecting Qidong in Jiangsu and Chongming in Shanghai, was successfully poured, marking the bridge’s entry into a new construction phase. On November 10, the 6.96-kilometer trestle of the South Sea Middle Approach Bridge of the Hangzhou Bay Cross-Sea Railway Bridge in Zhejiang was successfully completed, laying a solid foundation for subsequent construction on various offshore work fronts. On November 8, excavation for the foundation pit of the A2 section of the Haitai Yangtze River Tunnel project, connecting Haimen in Nantong and Taicang in Suzhou in Jiangsu, commenced, marking a new stage in the project’s construction.
These transportation projects are located throughout the Yangtze River Delta, but they share a striking common characteristic: they all bear the title of “world’s largest” or “world’s longest”. The Chongqi Railway-Road Yangtze River Bridge is the world’s largest span double-tower, double-cable-plane, railway-road dual-use ballastless track cable-stayed bridge. The Hangzhou Bay Cross-Sea Railway Bridge is the world’s longest cross-sea railway bridge. The Haitai Yangtze River Tunnel is the world’s longest underwater shield tunnel for highways.
(Photograph taken on November 9 showing the first layer concrete pouring operation at the lower crossbeam and tower column connection segment of Pier 4 of the Chongqi Railway-Road Yangtze River Bridge (drone photo). Source: Xinhua News Agency)
Throughout the Yangtze River Delta, such “super projects” are abundant. According to a review by The Paper (www.thepaper.cn), among the transportation projects currently under construction in the Yangtze River Delta, at least 11 bridges and tunnels rank among the “world’s best”, including 8 bridges and 3 underwater tunnels. Some are dedicated to high-speed rail, some are highway passages, and some serve both railway and road traffic.
In April 2020, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Transport issued the “Plan for Higher-Quality Integrated Development of Transportation in the Yangtze River Delta Region”, which explicitly stated the need to build a commuting transportation network that integrates the Yangtze River Delta. On November 30 of last year, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at a symposium on further promoting the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta that the region should accelerate the improvement of integrated development mechanisms, strengthen the cross-regional connection of various transportation network infrastructure standards, and enhance the level of infrastructure interconnection.
These “super bridges and tunnels” that traverse heaven and earth not only testify to the rapid advancement of China’s infrastructure technology but also break the physical barriers of crossing seas and rivers, fundamentally altering the transportation landscape of the Yangtze River Delta region. They further strengthen the connections between cities and metropolitan areas, driving the overall regional economic boom while vigorously promoting the integrated development of world-class city clusters.
“Dragon-like Bridges Spanning the Waves”
Among the eight bridges with “world’s best” titles, Zhejiang has three, Jiangsu and Anhui each have two, and one is located between Shanghai and Jiangsu.
Zhejiang’s three bridges are the Hangzhou Bay Cross-Sea Railway Bridge, the Xihoumen Railway-Road Dual-Use Bridge in Zhoushan, and the Yongjiang Super Bridge in Ningbo.
The Hangzhou Bay Cross-Sea Railway Bridge is a key control project for the newly constructed Tongzhou-Suzhou-Jiaxing-Ningbo high-speed rail (Nantong-Suzhou-Jiaxing-Ningbo), starting from Haiyan County in Jiaxing, spanning the Hangzhou Bay, one of the world’s three major strong-tide bays, and ending in Cixi City in Ningbo. It includes north, middle, and south channel bridges, as well as approach bridges across the dam, sea, and shallow water areas, with a total length of 29.2 kilometers. Designed for dual-lane ballastless track with a speed of 350 kilometers per hour. Construction for the bridge began in November 2022, with completion expected by the end of 2027. It is not only the world’s first strong-tide bay cross-sea railway bridge but also the world’s longest, highest-standard, and fastest high-speed railway cross-sea bridge.
The Xihoumen Railway-Road Dual-Use Bridge is a shared cross-sea bridge for the Ningbo-Zhoushan Railway and the Ningbo-Zhoushan Expressway reline, crossing the Xihoumen Waterway and connecting Jintang Island and Cezi Island in Zhoushan. With a total length of 3,118 meters and a main span of 1,488 meters using a cable-stayed suspension collaboration system, the bridge is 68 meters wide. It is the world’s largest span railway-road combined bridge under construction, the world’s widest cross-sea bridge, and the world’s largest span cable-stayed-suspension collaboration system bridge. The bridge adopts a “railway-road flat layer” layout with railways in the middle and roads on both sides. The railways are dual-lane passenger dedicated lines with a design speed of 250 kilometers per hour, while the roads are six-lane highways with a design speed of 100 kilometers per hour.
The Yongjiang Super Bridge is a key control project for the Ningbo section of the Hangzhou-Ningbo Expressway reline (Hangzhou-Ningbo). It spans the Zhenhai Port Area and the Yongjiang Estuary in Ningbo, with a total length of 1,730 meters and a main span of 570 meters. Designed with a large-inclination diamond-shaped tower, it is currently the world’s largest span asymmetric three-tower cable-stayed bridge.
Jiangsu’s two bridges are the Changtai Yangtze River Bridge and the Zhangjinggao Yangtze River Bridge.
The Changtai Yangtze River Bridge, connecting Changzhou and Taizhou, is located between the Taizhou Yangtze River Bridge and the Jiangyin Yangtze River Bridge. It is the first river-crossing channel on the Yangtze River that integrates highways, intercity railways, and ordinary roads. With a total length of 10.03 kilometers, including a 5,299.2-meter railway-road combined section, it consists of a 1,208-meter main span steel truss cable-stayed bridge, two 388-meter main span steel truss arch bridges, and a 3×124-meter continuous steel truss girder bridge. This bridge, expected to be basically completed in the first half of 2025, has set six world records: it is not only the world’s largest multifunctional load asymmetric arrangement bridge, the world’s largest span cable-stayed bridge, and the world’s largest span railway-road dual-use steel truss arch bridge but also has the world’s largest continuous length steel truss, the world’s largest carbon fiber composite cable, and the world’s highest strength parallel steel wire cable for bridges.
(Photograph taken on November 10 showing the Changtai Yangtze River Bridge under construction (drone photo). Source: Xinhua News Agency)
The Zhangjinggao Yangtze River Bridge spans Zhangjiagang City in Suzhou, Jingjiang City in Taizhou, and Rugao City in Nantong. The river-crossing section is about 7,900 meters long, consisting of south and north channel bridges, as well as south, middle, and north approach bridges. It is planned to be completed and open to traffic in 2028. It also boasts six “world’s best”: the south channel bridge has a span of 2,300 meters, making it the world’s largest span suspension bridge and the “inaugural work” for Chinese bridges breaking the 2,000-meter span mark; the main tower is 350 meters high, equivalent to a 125-story building, making it the world’s tallest suspension bridge tower; additionally, it has the world’s longest high-strength main cable, the world’s largest diaphragm wall anchorage foundation, the world’s longest continuous steel box girder, and the world’s largest displacement expansion device.
Anhui’s two bridges are the G3 (Beijing-Taipei Expressway) Tongling Yangtze River Railway-Road Bridge and the Ma’anshan Yangtze River Railway-Road Bridge.
The G3 Tongling Yangtze River Railway-Road Bridge is a double-layer cable-stayed-suspension collaboration system bridge with a total length of 11.88 kilometers and a main span of 988 meters. The upper deck is arranged with a six-lane highway, while the lower deck is arranged with a four-lane railway, serving highway, intercity railway, and freight railway functions. It is the world’s first double-layer cable-stayed-suspension collaboration system bridge, combining the advantages of both cable-stayed and suspension bridges, and is planned to be completed in 2025.
The Ma’anshan Yangtze River Railway-Road Bridge is a key control project for the Chaohu-Ma’anshan Intercity Railway (Hefei Chaohu-Ma’anshan). With a total length of 9