2012 High Bridge Trip Photo Album/Week 3
2012 China High Bridge Trip Photo Album
Hubei and Chongqing Provinces
The special spans visited during the third week included Xiling, First Wuhan, Erqi, Edong, Anqing, Ma'anshan, First through Fourth Nanjing, Taizhou, Sutong, Chongming, Lupu, Hangzhou Bay and Xihoumen Bridges.
The second of Wuhan's soon to be 10 Yangtze crossings is the appropriately named Wuhan 2nd Crossing Bridge. Constructed in 1995, the bridge opened almost 40 years after the famous 1957 road and rail bridge was completed. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Erqi Bridge opened in 2012 as the longest double span cable stayed bridge on earth with two back to back spans of 616 meters. There is no bridge in North or South America with even one cable stayed span of this length let alone two! Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The very first large bridge to cross the Yangtze was the First Wuhan crossing in 1957. The giant road and rail bridge was the model by which the more famous First Nanjing Bridge was based on. Russian Bridge engineers assisted in the design of the double decker truss that carries 2 tracks of the Beijing-Guangzhou line on the bottom as well as 4 road lanes and 2 pedestrian walkways on the top. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Yingwuzhou is Wuhan's latest crossing of the Yangtze with two back to back spans of 850 meters - equivalent to the 2 Tacoma Narrows Bridge spans placed end to end. The name translates to Parrot Chou Bridge. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The center tower is steel while the two shoreline towers are concrete. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Located next to the Yingwuzhou Bridge, this neighborhood was in the process of being demolished to make way for a huge retail and entertainment complex. Despite the impending destruction of their homes, many of the residents will continue to live in these buildings until the very last day when a wrecking ball finally forces them to pack up and leave. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The Yellow Crane Tower is the most famous historic site in Wuhan. Mao went up in it to survey the planned site of the giant bridge in 1953. The rain kept us from venturing up the tower. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Now more then 10 years old, the Baishazhou Bridge was one of the longest cable stayed bridges in the world in 2000 with a main span of 618 meters. The A-frame towers are very similar to Shanghai's Xupu Bridge. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The main span of Baishazhou consists of a steel deck. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
This single tower cable stayed bridge crosses the Han River in Wuhan. Several other large arch and beam bridges also cross the river before it empties into the Yangtze. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
A typical Chinese hotel bathroom with a fairly revealing glass wall. Image by Georges.
Another view of giant 8-lane Erqi Bridge. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Tianxingzhou broke records in 2009 when it became the longest combination road and rail cable stayed bridge in the world with a span of 504 meters. The incredibly bulky concrete towers support a rarely seen triple plane of cable stays. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
With a tower to tower span of 1,280 meters, the Yangluo suspension bridge is one of the dozen longest spans on earth. The "X" shaped Andrews cross bracing give the towers a distinctive look. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
This giant new road and railway bridge downstream of Wuhan will be among the largest of its type when it opens in 2013. No other country in the world has built so many large cable stayed railway bridge. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
With a main span of 480 meters, the E'Huang Bridge was one of the longest cable stayed spans across the Yangtze when it opened in 2002. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The Huangshi Bridge is the last downstream beam bridge to cross the Yangtze. The rest are all suspension or cable stayed designs. Opened in 1995, each of the 3 spans measure 245 meters. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
With towers 800 feet high and a span of 926 meters, Edong Bridge pushed ahead of Japan's famous Tatara Bridge to become the 4th longest cable stayed bridge on earth. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
When it opens in 2013 the Jiujiang bridge is going to rearrange the "Top 10" list of cable stayed spans with a steel box center span of 818 meters. This is just 2 meters longer then the Jingyue Bridge. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Several large gas stations had these tall pyramid shaped roofs. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Built in the grand style of the previous railway bridges at Wuhan and Nanjing, the Jiujiang railway bridge finally opened in 1992 after years of difficulties during its construction. The central arch span is 216 meters. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The Lake Poyang Bridge just north of Jiujiang city. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
the Anqing Bridge looks fairly conventional but still deserves some respect as its main span of 510 meters is longer then almost any cable stayed bridge in the North or South America. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The ferry was still popular with the locals! Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The city of Anqing will break the record books in 2013 when this new high speed railway cable stayed bridge opens with a main span of 580 meters. Image by Georges.
Some kind of gravel bed will be placed on top of the deck to support 2 of the high speed rail lines. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The viaduct on the right ended a short distance from the Anqing Bridge. Initially there will be just 2 rail lines open in 2013. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Construction will likely begin on the approaches to the other 2 rail lines at another time. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The Tongling Yangtze Bridge opened in 1995 with a span of 432 meters. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The Linjiang "Fish" Bridge in Wuhu is an odd combination of an observation tower building and cable stayed bridge. We never did come across any public entrance to the tower. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
One of China's early road and rail bridges from 2000, the Wuhu cable stayed bridge has a main span of 312 meters. The low angle of the stays as well as the unsupported sections in the middle and near the towers suggest this could also be labeled an extradosed bridge albeit with an unusually deep truss. Two rail lines traverse the lower level with 4 lanes of road on top. Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
This classic look of this concrete arch and wood pedestrian bridge are typical of many new construction projects where the builders want to convey a sense of China's thousand year old tradition of hand-built craftsmanship. Image by Georges.
The eastern section of the Ma'anshan Yangtze Bridge will be arguably one of the most beautiful cable stayed designs along the entire river with 2 back to back spans of 260 meters supported by oval shaped support towers that are the first of their kind in the world. Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The Ma'anshan Yangtze suspension bridge will be nearly completed during our 2012 visit and ties downstream neighbor Taizhou Bridge as having the 2 longest back to back suspension spans on earth. Each of the two spans is 1080 meters. The concrete section that makes up the lower portion of the central tower is somewhat different then Taizhou which is made up of an all steel A-frame style support. Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Cable spinning on a suspension bridge is an extremely rare process to see in person as there is no more large scale suspension bridge construction going on in either the Americas or Europe. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The dozens of cable bundles are connected to massive anchors embedded in the exposed anchorage. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The Ma'anshan tower tops have a one-of-a-kind cross beam design that looks like wood molding you might see in a doorway. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The only way to visit the suspension bridge from the east side of the Yangtze was across this ferry. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
The fog partially obscures what might be the nicest cable stayed towers along the entire Yangtze - the 215 meter tall steel wishbone supports of the 3rd Nanjing bridge that curve continuously from foundation to top. Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Georges.
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
Image by Eric Sakowski / HighestBridges.com
In 2013 check out our next China bridge trip adventure with a whole new collection of spectacular new spans including the first construction images of what is going to be the world's highest road and railway bridges plus dozens more!
