Bridges change lives of many in SW China's Guizhou

Photo shows a bridge section of an expressway built above Zangke River in southwest China's Guizhou Province. (Photo provided to People's Daily Online)

A section of an expressway is being built above the Zangke River. The expressway, connecting Nayong county of Bijie city with Qinglong county, Qianxinan Buyi and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in southwest China's Guizhou Province, spans 162.17 kilometers, while the bridge to tunnel ratio is 69.46 percent.

The expressway is of great importance to improving the expressway and road networks in Guizhou, and brings about rural revitalization by building on its success in poverty alleviation and advancing the exploitation of resources and energy in the region.

"I have seen many bridges built since I became a bridge builder 20 years ago. I feel very excited and I'm proud of our perseverance. I've met my father's expectations," said Shen Xiuqiao, a bridge builder.

His name carries the high expectations that his father has for the local transportation, Shen explained. The Chinese characters “xiuqiao” in Shen’s name mean 'building bridges' in English. Shen said that his father hoped that one day a bridge can be built to make it convenient for local villagers to travel, adding that his father's dream has now come true, and the lack of a bridge that could make life easier for local residents has become a thing of the past.

The bridge, with a total length of 1,849 meters and a main span of 1,080 meters, is located in the Wumengshan National Geographical Park. The major bridge tower at the Qinglong side of the bridge is 248.1 meters high and the major bridge tower at the Nayong side is 174.1 meters high, putting the bridge at 11th on the list of the world's 100 highest bridges, said Zhao Mingfu, who is in charge of a section of the Nayong-Qinglong expressway from Guizhou Highway Engineering Group Co., Ltd. affiliated to Guizhou Communications Construction Group Co., Ltd.

After it is completed, the Zangke River bridge is expected to slash travel time between the two places from one hour to one minute. It will do a great deal to drive the region’s economic growth and inject renewed vitality into the regional economy.

Photo shows the Wumengshan bridge, a section of the Nayong-Qinglong expressway. (Photo provided to People's Daily Online)

The Wumengshan bridge, located in the Wumeng Mountains, is another important section of the Nayong-Qinglong expressway. Once completed, the bridge will become the world's first long-span steel truss and concrete arch bridge.

The Wumengshan bridge not only enriches bridge structures in China and even around the world, but also will have a far-reaching impact on bridge structure design, bridge construction, construction methods and technical standards in China.

Why are there so many bridges in Guizhou?

Located in the hinterland of China's southwestern inland, more than 92 percent of Guizhou’s land is covered in mountains and hills. Guizhou needs to build tunnels through mountains and bridges above rivers to break the connectivity bottleneck and boost its economy.

Credible sources indicated that by the end of 2022, Guizhou was home to nearly half of the world's 100 tallest bridges and four of the world's 10 tallest bridges. Fifteen bridges in Guizhou had won national and international awards by that time.

"We've built more than 28,000 highway bridges," said Xu Xianghua, chief engineer of the Department of Transportation of Guizhou Province. The highway bridges that have been completed and are currently under construction add up to more than 5,400 km in Guizhou, Xu added.

Behind these bridges are the efforts made by countless people, and their work has changed the lives of many.

In Guizhou, bridges have also become popular scenic areas.

Luo Chihao is head of an expressway service area called "Sky Bridge.” It provides the best views of Pingtang Bridge, which has the highest concrete bridge tower in the world.

Luo's grandfather participated in the construction of a bridge section of the Chuanqian (Sichuan-Guizhou) Railway and his father took part in the construction of the bridge designed with a suspension and cable-stayed structure, which is a section of a high-grade highway linking Guiyang and Zunyi.

Since it started trial operations in December 2019, the "Sky Bridge" service area has recorded more than 55 million tourist visits, bringing in an operating revenue of 350 million yuan (about $48.99 million).

By the end of 2022, the total highway mileage in Guizhou had exceeded 8,300 km, and that figure is expected to hit 9,500 km by the end of 2025.