A third cross-sea bridge linking the Macao peninsula and Taipa island might be built to ease the growing traffic jam between the two parts of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR).

However, it is just an incipient plan and needs preliminary studies, the Macao Daily News Wednesday quoted Ao Man Long, secretary for transportation and public projects of the Macao SAR government, as saying.

And feasibility studies concerning site selection, time of construction and fund-raising have to be made before the project is actually carried out, Ao Man Long said.

The Macao peninsula and Taipa were linked up for the first time by a two-lane bridge in 1974, which greatly boosted the development of the island.

In the 1980s, the booming local economy made the bridge difficult to undertake mounting traffic. The pressure of transportation was alleviated to a great extent in 1994 when the second cross-sea bridge was completed.

Taipa island now accommodates an international airport, a university, a large stadium, a horse-racing ground, five-star hotels, three casinos, and many residential quarters, restaurants and tourist attractions.

Along with growing numbers of residents and vehicles in Taipa, serious congestion often occurs in rush hours, particularly on the old Macao-Taipa bridge.