Aizhai Bridge
| Aizhai Bridge 矮寨大桥 |
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|---|---|
 Aizhai Bridge under construction in August 2011 |
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| Carries | 6 lanes of  G65 Baotou–Maoming Expressway |
| Crosses | Dehang Grand Canyon (德夯大峡谷) |
| Locale | Jishou |
| Design | Suspension bridge |
| Width | 24.5 m (80 ft)[1] |
| Longest span | 1,146 m (3,760 ft) |
| Vertical clearance | 350 m (1,150 ft) |
| Construction begin | October 2007 |
| Construction end | December 2011 |
| Opened | 31 March 2012 |
| Coordinates | 28°19′52″N 109°35′51″E / 28.331°N 109.5974°ECoordinates: 28°19′52″N 109°35′51″E / 28.331°N 109.5974°E |
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The Aizhai Bridge (矮寨大桥) is a suspension bridge on the G65 Baotou–Maoming Expressway near Jishou, Hunan, China. The bridge was built as part of an expressway from southwest China's Chongqing Municipality to Changsha.[2]
With a main span of 1,146 metres (3,760 ft) and a deck height of 350 metres (1,150 ft),[3] as of 2013[update], it is the sixth-highest bridge in the world and the world's fifteenth-longest suspension bridge. Of the world's 400 or so highest bridges, none has a main span as long as Aizhai.[4] It is also the world's highest and longest tunnel-to-tunnel bridge.[5] The bridge contains 1888 lights to increase visibility at night.[6]
Construction on the Aizhai Bridge began in October 2007 and was completed by the end of 2011, ahead of schedule.[7][8] The bridge was temporarily opened to pedestrians during the 2012 Spring Festival[8] and was formally opened to traffic in March 2012.[9]
The bridge was built with the assistance of a $208 million loan from the Asian Development Bank; the loan also funded 64 kilometres (40 mi) of expressway construction and upgrades to 129 kilometres (80 mi) of local roads.[10] The bridge and the associated road construction were projected to reduce the travel time between Jishou and Chadong from 4 hours to less than 1 hour.[10]
In September 2012, the Aizhai Bridge was the site of an international BASE jumping festival that included more than 40 jumpers from 13 countries.[11][12][13]
See also
↑Jump back a sectionReferences
- ^ 湘西：矮寨大桥主体工程即将完工
- ^ The bridge that suspends belief | Photo Gallery - Yahoo! News
- ^ Hunan Government
- ^ Sakowski, Eric Sakowski (2009). "Aizhai Bridge from highestbridges.com" (in en-US). http://highestbridges.com/. Retrieved 9 March 2012.
- ^ "China (News),Road transport (News),World news". The Guardian (London). 2 April 2012.
- ^ "China opens record-breaking bridge over canyon". The Daily Telegraph (London). 30 March 2012.
- ^ 吉首矮寨悬索大桥达到通车标准（组图）
- ^ a b 湖南：矮寨大桥竣工成为湘西一景 春节开放每天万人参观（图）_中国公路网
- ^ 湖南：吉茶高速矮寨大桥3月通车_中国公路网
- ^ a b http://www.adb.org/Documents/RRPs/PRC/37494-PRC-RRP.pdf
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/9547437/Daredevils-take-part-in-Chinese-base-jumping-festival.html
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBV7QrDpRJw
- ^ http://suzgraham.com/2012/10/11/aizhai-bridge-jumping-festival-aizhai-china/
External links
Media related to Aizhai Bridge at Wikimedia Commons- Aizhai Bridge on HighestBridges.com
- Aizhai Suspension Bridge at Structurae
- Video from The Telegraph including aerial views of the Aizhai Bridge
Media related to 