World's Longest-span Asymmetric Railway Arch Bridge Connected

The Youshui Bridge of the Zhangjiajie-Jishou-Huaihua high-speed railway was connected on Aug 9, bringing construction of the most difficult section of the world's longest-span asymmetric railway arch bridge to an end.

Located near Furong county, Yongshun town in western Hunan Province, the bridge is 462 meters long, and crosses over the U-shaped Youshui River Valley with steep mountains on both banks.

Workers of China Railway Siyuan Survey and Design Group Co., Ltd. took advantage of the geographical features and built an asymmetrical concrete-filled steel tube deck bridge with a 292-meter main span.

According to Zhang Jie, design head of the project, the height difference between the two springs of the bridge is 43.5 meters which called for close cooperation between the designers and builders.

In addition, it was also the first time in China that the two sides of the arch ribs of a bridge were hoisted as a whole.

Zhang explained that the hoisting was conducted by a cable crane which can meet the need for construction in mountains and valleys where large-scale machines are not able to enter.

The designed hoisting weight was 300 tons, the heaviest equipment in the Zhangjiajie-Jishou-Huaihua high-speed railway project so far.

The connection also signaled the beginning of the full construction of the bridge's topside and laid a solid foundation for its completion in 2020.

The 246-kilometer Zhangjiajie-Jishou-Huaihua high-speed railway has a designed speed of 350 kilometers per hour and will have seven stations. The project is scheduled to be completed in 2021.

Travel time between Huaihua and Zhangjiajie will be shortened from 3.5 hours to one when it opens to traffic.

The Youshui Bridge in western Hunan Province, a section of the Zhangjiajie-Jishou-Huaihua high-speed railway, is connected on Aug 9. [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]

(Executive editor: Hao Wen)