Sea-crossing bridge sets 10 world records

Last weekend, China opened the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Bridge-Tunnel project, a cross-sea bridge-tunnel system located in Guangdong province. This engineering marvel broke 10 world records upon its completion, New Atlas July 1 news.

The Pearl River estuary, where it flows into the South China Sea, is one of the most densely populated areas in the world. It includes Hong Kong, Macao and nine cities in Guangdong, separated by a vast expanse of water, making travel difficult. The Shenzhen-Zhongshan project was designed to overcome that disadvantage. The 24-kilometer-long structure connects two cities on opposite sides of the Pearl River estuary. However, it is not a long bridge, but a tunnel runs between two artificial islands, with bridges connecting each island to the city on the same side.

With eight lanes and a maximum speed of 100 km/h, the new route shortens driving time from two hours to 30 minutes. After seven years of construction, the project opened to traffic at 3 p.m. on June 30 local time. According to CGTN, the Shenzhen-Zhongshan project set 10 world records, including the highest bridge deck (91 m), the highest clearance for a sea bridge, the largest offshore suspension bridge anchor (344,000 m3 of concrete), the highest wind resistance test speed for a suspension bridge (83.7 m/s), the largest steel bridge deck paved with hot-mixed epoxy asphalt (378,800 m2), the longest 8-lane two-way submerged tube tunnel, the widest underwater steel-shelled concrete submerged tube tunnel (55.6 m), the largest casting volume for a steel-shelled submerged tube using self-compacting concrete (29,000 m3/tube section), and the widest foldable M-shaped waterstop used in the final joint of a submerged tube tunnel (3 m).

On top of that, the tunnel has some interesting safety features, including a new fire suppression system. A team of 14 robots patrol the tunnel regularly, monitoring pipes and cables to keep things running smoothly, even keeping an eye out for car accidents. When that happens, they can direct traffic through built-in speakers, record footage, and stream it to a remote control center.

The lights along the tunnel walls also use a color-coded system. When everything is okay, the lights are green, but in an emergency, they turn red. The lights can even switch from yellow to green along the length of the tunnel, guiding people in the right direction when it is time to evacuate.

The Shenzhen-Zhongshan project connects with the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, the world’s longest sea-crossing bridge, 31 km away, making it easier for people to travel around these densely populated areas.