Runyang Bridge
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The Runyang Bridge (Simplified Chinese: 润扬长江大桥; Traditional Chinese: 潤揚長江大橋; Hanyu pinyin: rùnyáng chángjiāng dà qiáo) is a large bridge complex that crosses the Yangtze River in Jiangsu Province, China, downstream of Nanjing. The complex consists of two major bridges that link Zhenjiang on the south bank of the river and Yangzhou on the north. The bridge is part of the Beijing-Shanghai Expressway.
The south bridge is a suspension bridge with a main span of 1,490 meters. Upon its completion in 2005 it became the third largest suspension bridge in the world and the largest in China. The towers are 215 meters above water level. The two approach spans are not suspended. The main span of the bridge consists of a streamlined orthotropic steel box girder that is 3.0 meters in depth. The width of the deck is 39.2 meters, accommodating 6 traffic lanes and a narrow walkway at each outside edge for maintenance. The height clearance for river navigation is about 50 meters.
The north bridge is a cable-stayed bridge with a main span of 406 meters with towers 150 meters above water level. In between the two bridges is the island of Siyezhou. The total length of the bridge complex is about 35.66 km.
Construction of the bridge complex began in October 2000 and was completed ahead of schedule. The bridge cost 5.8 billion Yuan (about US$ 700 million). The complex opened to traffic on April 30, 2005.
Two suspension bridges are planned in China which will be larger than the south bridge, the Xihoumen Bridge (1,650 meters), and Qiongzhou Bridge (2,000 meters to 2,500 meters).
