The world’s tallest bridge is officially open to traffic in southern China, and it’s doing more than just breaking records—it’s reducing distances, and tedious journey into a quick two-minute drive.
The Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge rises approximately 2,050 feet above the Beipan River in the province of Guizhou, in southern China. According to CNN and NBC News, it is the tallest bridge in the world.
The span goes for around 4,600 feet across the canyon. It’s now the longest bridge in a mountainous region, according to NBC News. Crossing the canyon needed an extended, complicated trip that could take up to two hours before the opening of this structure. Drivers can now complete the same trip in nearly two minutes because of the new route across the gorge.
Local officials say it took three years and eight months to build it. It now connects important tourist destinations in the region, but it also makes regular travel much faster for people who live and work nearby.
From one record to another
The Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge didn’t just show up out of nowhere. Guizhou province is already known for very impressive structures, like the Beipanjiang Bridge—which crosses the same river. That earlier bridge won a record… but the new one completely took the “world’s tallest” title away from it.
The combination of height and location is what makes this project unique. The structure crosses a deep gorge in a mountainous region. However, building a road at that height means dealing with high winds, huge temperature variations, and the issue of supporting a long deck above a sharp drop. This structure also redefines what is believed to be possible for this type of engineering.
The goal wasn’t just to set a record, though. The officials hope that by making it quicker and simpler to go to picturesque locations, more tourists would arrive, stay longer, and spend more money at nearby establishments.
A destination, not just a shortcut
As mentioned before, the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge is also designed as a location to visit. One of the highest points of the construction holds a coffee shop built on top of one of the towers. This viewpoint sits about 2,600 feet above the river, according to NBC News. Visitors can ride a high-speed elevator up to the summit and enjoy enormous open views over the canyon.
The span offers even more for those looking for adrenalin and actual unique experiences: You can do bungee jumping from the structure, jumping toward the river far below before bouncing back up on the cord. There is also a glass walkway around 1,900 feet in the air. Walking over glass panels with nothing but space beneath your feet turns the bridge into an attraction in its own right.
The bridge works on different levels because of its combination of regular use and tourism. It saves time for drivers, creates new avenues for business, and acts as an attractive location for visitors who want to see the environment from a striking angle.
A new landmark in the sky
The Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge now stands as the span bridge in the world, high over the Beipan River, with a length of 4,600 feet and a road deck around 2,050 feet in the air. It transformed a two-hour journey into a two-minute drive, brought together important tourist attractions, and contributed a new chapter to China’s increasing list of engineering successes.
To put things in perspective, in the United States the Royal Gorge Bridge in southern Colorado is considered the country’s highest bridge. It was constructed in about seven months, opened in 1929, and is 956 feet above the Arkansas River, according to its official website. Up until 2001, it was the world’s tallest bridge.