This previous weekend China opened the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Hyperlink, a brand new cross-sea tunnel and bridge system positioned in Guangdong Province, South China. The architectural marvel apparently breaks 10 world data – albeit very particular ones.
The Pearl River estuary, the place the Pearl River flows into the South China Sea, is likely one of the most densely populated areas on this planet. It encompasses Hong Kong, Macao and 9 cities in Guangdong, that are separated by vast our bodies of water – and that makes getting round a large ache.
The Shenzhen-Zhongshan Hyperlink is designed to treatment that. The hyperlink runs for twenty-four km (15 miles), connecting the 2 cities in its identify that are positioned on reverse banks of the Pearl River estuary. It’s not one lengthy bridge although – an underwater tunnel within the center runs between two synthetic islands, with bridges connecting every island to town on that aspect.
With eight lanes permitting for speeds of as much as 100 km/h (62 mph), the hyperlink apparently shaves what’s usually a two-hour drive down to only half-hour. After seven years of building, the hyperlink lastly opened to visitors at 3 pm native time on June 30.
In accordance with the China World Tv Community (CGTN), the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Hyperlink units 10 new world data. They aren’t your primary data like longest or greatest bridge, although – the truth is, they’re hilariously particular. Right here’s the record:
- Largest span for a totally offshore metal field girder suspension bridge (1,666 m/5,466 ft)
- Highest bridge deck (91 m/299 ft)
- Highest navigation clearance for a sea bridge
- Largest offshore suspension bridge anchor (344,000 m3 /12 million cubic ft of concrete)
- Highest wind resistance take a look at velocity for a suspension bridge (83.7 m/273.6 ft per second)
- Largest metal bridge deck with hot-mix epoxy asphalt paving (378,800 m2 /4 million sq ft)
- Longest two-way, eight-lane immersed tube tunnel (5,035 m/16,519 ft)
- Widest underwater metal shell-concrete immersed tube tunnel (as much as 55.6 m/182.4 ft)
- Largest single-volume solid for a steel-shell immersed tube utilizing self-compacting concrete (29,000 m3 /1 million cubic ft per tube part)
- Widest repeatedly foldable M-shaped water cease used within the closing joint of an immersed tube tunnel (3 m/9.8 ft)
It additionally occurs to be the world’s first underwater expressway interchange and airport interchange.
On high of all that, the tunnel part packs some intriguing security options, together with new firefighting and smoke exhaust programs. A group of 14 robots continually patrols the tunnel, monitoring the pipes and cables that maintain all the pieces operating easily, and may even maintain a watch out for automotive accidents. When that occurs, they will apparently direct visitors by way of built-in loudspeakers, and movie the scene whereas transmitting it to a distant management heart.
Lights alongside the partitions additionally function color-coded mild programs. When all is ok they’re inexperienced, however in emergencies they’ll flip pink. They will even progressively flip from yellow to inexperienced alongside the size of the tunnel to assist information individuals in the best path throughout an evacuation.
The Shenzhen-Zhongshan Hyperlink joins the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge – the world’s longest sea crossing bridge, positioned about 31 km (19 miles) away – in serving to individuals get round these densely populated areas a bit simpler.
Sources: State Council of Folks’s Republic of China, CGTN, Xinhua