The railway section of the Shituo Yangtze River Bridge successfully completed closure on Wednesday in China’s Chongqing. This marked closure on all 149 bridges along the Chongqing-Wanzhou High-Speed Railway.
Also, a record-breaking will be experienced in the super bridge in China. This comes at a time when the bridge is entering its final construction stage. The Chongqi Yangtze River Bridge stands the world’s largest-span railroad cable-stayed bridge. It is expected will complete its main span closure in early June.
Additionally, this 4.09-kilometer dual-layer bridge connects Shanghai to Jiangsu Province. Its upper deck serves highway traffic, while the lower layer supports high-speed trains running up to 350 kilometers per hour. Once finished, it will become the first Yangtze River crossing to allow full high-speed rail passage. The project will greatly optimize regional transport and boost the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta.
Design
The conceptualization and design of the Shituo Yangtze River Bridge is a joint masterclass in modern mega-engineering executed by two of China’s premier engineering institutions: China Railway Bridge Survey and Design Institute (BRDI) and China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group (CREEC). Tasked with designing a critical crossing for the Chongqing-Wanzhou High-Speed Railway, the design teams introduced an unprecedented layout to handle intense dual-purpose demands.
They pioneered the world’s first asymmetric, double-diamond “twin-linked” tower layout (253 meters high) supporting a shared deck. Instead of stacking traffic vertically, the engineering teams designed a massive, single-level split deck that positions a high-speed double-track railway (350 km/h) directly alongside a six-lane highway. By engineering this layout, the design team broke four world records and set a new standard for handling massive structural loads over deep water channels.
Significance of the Project
The Shituo Yangtze River Bridge serves as the foundational linchpin for the entire Chongqing-Wanzhou High-Speed Railway network, acting as the final and most complex structural piece to connect all 149 bridges along the 350 km/h arterial line. By seamlessly blending regional highway lanes and high-speed rail across a single, highly engineered platform, the project eliminates the need for multiple independent river crossings, dramatically reducing construction footprints and protecting the sensitive ecological landscape of the Yangtze River basin.
Economically, it drastically shrinks the travel time between the urban core of Chongqing and the key economic hub of Wanzhou to under one hour, accelerating regional integration, streamlining logistics, and unlocking massive trade and tourism potential across Southwest China.
Also this project alongside the world’s tallest bridge, the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge, cement China’s position as a leading global engineering hub especially in transport infrastructure.
Shituo Yangtze River Bridge Project Factsheet
Total Bridge Length: 1,416.9 meters
Main Bridge Structure Length: 1,056 meters
Main Span (Central Crossing): 608 meters
North Main Tower Height: 234.9 meters (Capped in May 2025)
Main Tower Configuration: Asymmetric, double-diamond “twin-linked” towers
South Main Tower Height: 253 meters
Deck Layout Type: Single-level split deck (Side-by-side traffic)
Total Deck Width: 48.5 meters
Railway Infrastructure: Dual-track high-speed railway lines built on one lateral side of the flat deck.
Railway Design Speed: 350km/h (The world’s first road-rail combined bridge to support this speed safely).
Highway Infrastructure: Six-lane highway built side-by-side on the opposing lateral side of the flat deck.
Regional Economic Target: Shrinks transit times between the city centers of Chongqing and Wanzhou to under one hour.
Major Project Milestones
- June 2023: Initial core designs and geographical surveys publicized.
- May 2025: The 234.9-meter North Main Tower is successfully capped, solidifying the bridge’s main structural skyline.
- October 2025: Installation of the first massive steel girder section commences, initiating the final deck assembly.
- May 2026: The railway line deck sections achieve complete structural closure over the shipping channel via symmetric cantilever assembly.
- Late 2026 (Targeted): Planned complete structural closure of the adjacent highway lanes to finalize structural engineering ahead of traffic paving.
Leave a Reply