China to Unveil World’s Sea Bridge

//China to Unveil World’s Sea Bridge

China to Unveil World’s Sea Bridge

source: thestar.com.my

The longest sea-crossing bridge is set to open in China. It’s a whopping 34 miles long and will connect three different cities.

When it comes to technological and industrial innovation, countries such as the UK, the US, and Japan are the ones that automatically spring to most people’s minds. The nation that is often forgotten when it comes to this sphere is China. China is making huge leaps forward in a variety of ways, including the bridge building business.

The Asian nation has continued to demonstrate that with the completion of its ambitious Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. The sea-crossing structure is an impressive 34 miles long, making it the longest bridge of its kind. It’s main purpose, as its name suggests, is to link the cities of Hong Kong, Zhuhai, and Macao. The masterminds behind the bridge believe it will cut the commute time between the cities from three hours to just 30 minutes.

We are able to bring you all of the most intricate details about the record-breaking bridge plus the story behind it, courtesy of CNN. Gao Xinglin, a senior engineer on the project, revealed that the aim is for the bridge to lead to China having its very own greater bay area, akin to San Francisco and Tokyo. 68 million people live in the area, and it apparently accounts for 12% of China’s total GDP.

As with any project as big as this one, getting the bridge built has been a tall order. Planning began all the way back in 2003, but a number of roadblocks have been thrown up since then. For starters, the three cities being linked all have different currencies, passports, legal systems, and even speak two different languages. On top of all that, residents of Hong Kong drive on the opposite side of the road to people in China, so there was that hurdle to clear too.

There were times when it looked as if it would never come to fruition, but the bridge has indeed been completed. 34 miles long, including an underwater tunnel, and it also has four man-made islands connecting it. An impressive structure, but not the longest bridge in the world. It may be the longest sea-crossing bridge ever built, but the longest bridge of any kind (Danyang–Kunshan Grand Bridge) is three times as long at 102 miles and is also situated in China.

2018-12-10T13:39:09+00:00