A road bridge across the Yellow River invested by a coal transportation company of Xiangning county in Shanxi province and Li Baotian, a private entrepreneur in Shaanxi province, was recently open after a testing period of twelve months beginning in December 1998.

It is the first privately-funded bridge among the Yellow River's 47 bridges. It is 543 meters long, 12 meters wide and 47 meters high.

Located in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, it connects Xiangning county in Shanxi province, north China with the city of Hancheng, in Shaanxi province, northwest China. The bridge was built at a cost of more than 96 million yuan (12 million US dollars).

The two investors have the permission of the two provincial governments to charge toll fees as vehicles cross the bridge. They expect that it will take at least eight years to pay off the bridge through toll fees.