On the morning of August 3, workers hoisted the last section of the steel-concrete composite beams onto the main girders at the construction site of the Dongtingxi Yuanshui Grand Bridge project in Qinglang Township, Yuanling County. (Photo/Guo Liliang, Hunan Daily)

On August 3, the Dongtingxi Yuanshui Grand Bridge on the Zhangjiajie-Guanzhuang Expressway was under construction in Yuanling County, Huaihua City. (Drone Photo/Chen Sihan, Xinhua)

On August 3, a worker directed the lifting of steel-concrete composite beams at the construction site of the Dongtingxi Yuanshui Grand Bridge on the Zhangjiajie-Guanzhuang Expressway. (Photo/Chen Sihan, Xinhua)

On August 3, the Dongtingxi Yuanshui Grand Bridge on the Zhangjiajie-Guanzhuang Expressway was under construction in Yuanling County, Huaihua City. (Drone Photo/Chen Sihan, Xinhua)

On the same day, as the final section of the steel-concrete composite beams weighing over 200 tonnes was slowly lifted into place, the main span of the Dongtingxi Yuanshui Grand Bridge was successfully joined together. The bridge is a key control project of the Zhangjiajie-Guanzhuang Expressway constructed by the Hunan Road & Bridge Construction Group Co., Ltd., laying a solid foundation for the full opening of the expressway in 2026. The Dongtingxi Yuanshui Grand Bridge is located within Yuanling County, Huaihua City, Hunan Province, with a total length of 1,707 meters and a main bridge span of 800 meters. It is a double-tower single-span suspension bridge.

The Zhangjiajie-Guanzhuang Expressway starts in Yongding District, Zhangjiajie City in the north and ends in Guanzhuang Town, Yuanling County, Huaihua City in the south. The main line is approximately 82 kilometers long, with a design speed of 100 kilometers per hour. The expressway is an important component of the Hohhot-Beihai Expressway (National Expressway G59). Upon operation, it will directly connect the three major tourism and economic circles of Zhangjiajie, Huaihua, and Xiangxi, establishing a major transportation artery linking to ASEAN ports. The expressway will reduce the travel time from the Wuling Mountain Region to the Yangtze River Economic Belt by two hours, thereby playing a significant role in promoting regional coordinated development.

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Yu Jiangjiang

Chinese sources: hunan.gov.cn; Xinhua