China: Longest cross-sea bridge in Guangxi opens to traffic

Longmen Bridge, the longest sea-crossing bridge in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, is now open to traffic.

It is the first mega bridge in Guangxi, China and is a major part of the Guangxi Binhai Expressway. The two-way six-lane expressway is a huge engineering feat: the bridge is 7.6 km long, including a main span of 1,098 metres. 

Cable-stayed bridge

Built using a steel box girder cable-stayed design, it can handle large ships up to 20,000 metric tonnes passing underneath. 

The structure is designed to resist wind speeds of up to 504 km/h — much faster than the winds of Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Andrew, which were around 280 km/h, as per Xinhua news agency.

Faster connections

The Longmen Bridge links Qinzhou Port to Fangchenggang Port, cutting the travel time between the two from 90 minutes to just 25 minutes. 

It is part of a larger coastal expressway that stretches 60 kilometers to Vietnam’s border, helping improve regional trade and transportation.

Benefits

The bridge has six lanes and was built to meet high-speed traffic standards, allowing vehicles to travel up to 100 km/h.

Local officials say it will play a major role in boosting the Beibu Gulf economic zone, fostering faster growth and development in the region.

With its completion, the Longmen Bridge represents a huge step forward for infrastructure and economic ties in southern China.

At A Glace: Longmen Bridge (Guangxi)