Nansha Port railway construction enters final stage

Construction crews finish laying tracks on the Hongqili Waterway Bridge on Nov 9. [Photo/China News Service]

The completion of laying tracks on the Guangzhou Nansha Port Railway's Hongqili Waterway Bridge moved the project forward into its final stage on Nov 9.

The arch of the Hongqili Waterway Bridge is about 100 meters high and the whole bridge is 998 meters long. The main span of the bridge is 360 meters, being the longest among the same type of bridges around the world, which gives the bridge the title of being the "the bridge in Asia with the biggest span."

The bright ballastless slab track bridge deck system was applied on the bridge for the first time in China, which reduced the weight of the bridge's deck pavement and saved 17 percent of steel usage compared with traditional methods. It will give the bridge more durability and a longer service life as well as enable more stable and safe train operations. 

The Nansha Port Railway is a major transportation development project in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. It is also the first freight railway to enter the Nansha area of the China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone. 

It is expected that the railway will be opened to traffic by the end of this year.