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Bridge over Yangtze River starting construction
By Jiang Wei (China Daily)
Updated: 2004-12-29 22:19
Construction of a large-span bridge over the Yangtze River section in
Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality began yesterday.
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| An
artist depiction of the bridge. [Xinhua] | The
1,741-metre-long Chaotianmen bridge, to link the south and the north banks of
the river, should play a big role in alleviating transportation pressures in of
the city's urban areas.
With light rail on its lower level and a six-lane highway on a top level, the
expanse will become the platform for several methods of public transportation in
the city after its completion over the next three and half years.
Local governments will pour over 3 billion yuan (US$360 million) into this
project, which will be constructed by China Harbour Engineering Company (Group),
the leading bridge construction firm in the country.
"We are confident that we will successfully complete the project by 2008 and
we believe the bridge will become a new landmark architecture in Chongqing,"
said Liu Huaiyuan, president of China Harbour.
Peng Jiang, a young man who lives along the Yangtze River's south bank, could
not hide his excitement about the project.
"It takes me half an hour to nearly one hour to cross the river by ship, but
it will take only several minutes by bus when the bridge is completed, " Peng
told China Daily.
Ships highly depend on the weather: They do not operate when it is dark or
when there is fog, which happens frequently in Chongqing, especially in winter,
he added.
Meanwhile, the bridge means more than transportation convenience for the
city.
According to the municipal government, a vast area along the Yangtze River
has been designed to be a central business district, including part of Yuzhong
District, part of Nan'an District and part of Jiangbei District.
Geographical disadvantages have confined the economic growth of Nan'an and
Jiangbei.
Experts predict that by providing better transportation to citizens, the
bridge will drive real estate growth and industrial development in the
area.
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