China has officially opened the world’s highest bridge, the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge, in Guizhou province. The enormous structure rises 625 metres above the Beipan River—almost twice as high as Auckland’s Sky Tower—and has cut a two-hour drive across the canyon down to just two minutes.
The bridge stretches nearly 2.9 kilometres in length, with its main central span measuring 1,420 metres. It took engineers three years to build, and its opening was celebrated by large crowds, including the bridge’s designers and local officials.
The Huajiang Bridge takes the title of the world’s highest bridge from another Chinese bridge nearby—the Beipanjiang Bridge, which stands 565 metres tall.
Before the opening, a team tested the bridge’s strength by placing 96 heavy trucks on it to make sure it was safe. The bridge has now broken records not only as the world’s highest but also as the longest-span bridge ever built in a mountainous area.
Although this is the highest bridge in terms of how far it sits above the ground, the world’s tallest bridge structure remains France’s Millau Viaduct, which is 343 metres tall.
Guizhou province, known for its hills and valleys, is now home to almost half of the 100 highest bridges in the world.
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