Nanjing (Nanking) City Tour Package
Yangtze River Bridge
The Nanjing
Yangtze River Bridge, which was constructed between 1960 and 1968,
is the third bridge built to span the Yangtze River after the Wuhan
Yangtze River Bridge and the Baishatuo Yangtze River Bridge (in
Chongqing City). As the longest bridge with the dual functions of
highway and railway listed in the Guinness Book of World Records, it
is the first bridge in China solely designed and constructed by
Chinese.
The significant double-deck construction is made up of
the main bridge portion which spans 1,577 meters (about 1,725 yards)
and the bridge approach which measures 3,012 meters (about 3,294
yards). The upper deck of the bridge is a highway with a span of
4,589 meters (about 5,019 yards). There are sidewalks on either side
of the highway and each measures over two meters (about two yards)
in width. The lower deck holds a twin-track railway with a length of
6,772 meters (about 7,406 yards) and a width of 14 meters (about 15
yards) that allows two trains to run in different directions.
The Yangtze River bridge has nine piers altogether,
among which the tallest one is 85 meters (about 279 feet) with the
base area of about 400 square meters (478 square yards), larger than
a basketball court. There are 200 cast iron reliefs inlayed on the
banisters on the two sides of the highway as well as 150 pairs of
street lamps along the sidewalks on the main section of the bridge.
Two bridge towers are located respectively at each end of the bridge
each with a height of 70 meters (about 230 feet). They contain
elevators that enable personal access to both decks of the bridge as
well as the watchtowers. Under the southern bridge tower there is a
beautiful park.
The Yangtze River bridge at night is extremely
charming. The illumination of 1,024 floodlights on the banisters,
540 halogen lights on the bridge towers and 150 pairs of lamps of
the sidewalks make the bridge look like a pearl string lying on the
Yangtze River.
The completion of the bridge has reduced the river
crossing time from about two hours by ferry to the course of only
several minutes, which is much more convenient for communication
between the two banks of the Yangtze River.
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