The Beipanjiang Bridge has been described as “China’s Impossible Engineering Feat.” Evidently, though, the stunningly high crossing is very much in the realm of possibility.
Elevated a dizzying 565 meters (1,854 feet) above a river valley, the Beipanjiang Bridge is the highest bridge in the world – at least for now.
Also known as the Duge Bridge, its construction was completed in 2016, becoming the first bridge in the world to ever surpass the 500-meter (1,640 feet) height barrier.
It stretches for 720 meters (2,362 feet) over the mighty Beipan River at a location in Dugexiang, close to the border between the provinces of Guizhou and Yunnan in a mountain-ridden region of southwestern China.
Completed in 2016, the Duge Bridge is part of the G56 Hangrui Expressway, which links vast parts of southern China.
It’s what’s known as a cable-stayed bridge, a crossing where the deck is directly supported by cables connected to towers, distributing the load evenly and allowing for longer spans with fewer supports.
“The trick is to try and not put too much or too little tension in each cable,” Simon Pitchers, a Fellow of the Institution of Structural Engineers, told BBC Newshour while speaking about the construction of the Beipanjiang Bridge.
“If you get it wrong on a bridge like this, you’ll have a wavy deck. And of course they haven’t, it’s been completed brilliantly,” he explained.
Dominated by vertical limestone cliffs and mountainous topography, the surrounding region is home to a collection of immense road and railway bridges that are spaced across the landscape every 50 kilometers (31 miles) or so.
China has become something of a bridge-building behemoth in the past few decades. Its four western Provinces – Guizhou, Hubei, Yunnan, and Chongqing – have 10 of the world’s 12 highest bridges, and the wider region has more than 50 other crossings that exceed 152 meters (500 feet) in height. This achievement is even more remarkable when you consider that China only had one bridge over 122 meters (400 feet) in 1994.
More bridges are currently in the works – and the Beipanjiang Bridge will not have the title of the world’s highest for much longer. China is currently building an even higher bridge in Guizhou Province called the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge, with a designed height of 625 meters (feet). The project is expected to be completed in 2025, according to Chinese media.
Engineers are also working on plans for the Yongchang Lancangjiang Bridge in Yunnan with a height of 610 meters (2,001 feet), which won’t be completed until 2027.
And lastly, if these lofty feats aren’t impressing you, China holds the record for the longest bridge on Earth too: the Danyang-Kunshan Grand Bridge, a 164.8-kilometer (102.4-mile) long viaduct that shuttles high speed rail between Beijing and Shanghai.
Source Link: The World's Highest Bridge Stands A Dizzying 565 Meters Over A River Valley