Construction begin for the World Longest Sea bridge - HK-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge 港珠澳大橋正式動工 (港珠澳大桥正式动工)

Pic Source : EPA
An artist's impression of the completed bridge


An important milestone of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge has been reached, with construction of the bridge began on 15th December. The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is a massive automobile bridge linking Hong Kong and Macau, and mainland city Zhuhai. Reclamation projects to create the artificial islands in Macau and Zhuhai ports are part of the first phase of construction.

The 50-km Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, expected to be the world's longest sea bridge feature a six-lane expressway able to accommodate vehicle speeds of up to 100 kilometers per hour, and expected to remain in good shape for up to 120 years. Six lanes of traffic will pass across the bridge at a maximum speed of 100kmph. It will also feature a parking garage for 10,000 vehicles on the Macau side. Two artificial islands will connect the tunnel and bridge on either side.

The project consist of a series of bridges, tunnels and roads that will rival the longest bridges in the world, which will be jointly constructed by the three cities. The Y-shaped bridge is being built at a cost of US$10.54 billion. The main section of the bridge include a 29.6-km oversea pass and a 6 km harbor tunnel under the South China Sea.

The project is expected to be completed in either 2015 or 2016. Currently, high-speed ferries that travel across the South China Sea connect Hong Kong and Macau.


舉世矚目的世界最長跨海通道 - 港珠澳大橋正式動工, 開工儀式在珠海市拱北灣舉行。

港珠澳大橋是一座連接粵港澳三地的大型跨海通道。 大橋全長49.968公里, 工程包括三項內容：一是海中橋隧工程； 海中橋隧工程起自香港大嶼山, 經香港水域穿越珠江口銅鼓航道、伶仃西航道、青州航道、九洲航道，止於珠澳口岸人工島, 全長約35.6公里。 為了安全考量, 每隔90米就有一個互通的逃生通道; 二是香港、珠海、澳門三地口岸； 三是香港、珠海、澳門三地連接線。 大橋「Y」型設計和人工島構築力求美觀, 並將專門設置海景觀賞平台和白海豚觀賞區。

大橋的施工工期約6年, 建成後將成為地標性建築, 使用壽命長達120年, 並可以抗擊八級地震。 預計在2015年至2016年全線通車。 建成後香港到澳門的車程更只要不到1小時。

大橋總投資已飆升至730億, 其中逾六公里長的「沉管隧道」將是世界上最複雜的一個交通項目, 要造32節「沉管」相當於32艘八萬噸級的航空母艦那麼大, 估算僅建安費達128億元。 「沉管」將是世界上最大。 據介紹每一節「沉管」長180米、寬38米、高11.5米，重達8萬噸。 大橋建設內容囊括路、橋、隧、島等多項工程, 涉及白海豚保護、防洪、防颱風和滿足通航、海事、航空限高要求等多方面問題, 工程艱巨、建設條件複雜。