World’s Longest Sea Link Opens

China's new bridge connecting Hong Kong, Zhuhai in Guangdong Province and Macao was put into service on October 24.

At 55 kilometers in length, the Hong Kong-zhuhai-macao Bridge is the world's longest sea link, and is designed to support a maximum speed of 100 kilometers per hour. It now takes only about half an hour for a car to travel from Hong Kong to Macao.

To support the long-distance connection, the bridge is built on two 100,000 square meter man-made islands, one in Hong Kong and the other in Macao. It spans a 6.7 kilometer-long submarine tunnel which posed a big challenge to the construction. Chinese media reports said the bridge took nearly eight years and cost 126.9 billion yuan (US$18.4B) to build.

So far, only cross-border buses, taxis, cargo vehicles and private cars are allowed to use the bridge, with tolls ranging from 60-300 yuan (US$8.7-43.5) based on vehicle size.