China opens world’s longest sea-crossing bridge
THE 55KM BRIDGE WILL CUT JOURNEY TIMES BETWEEN ZHUHAI AND HONG KONG FROM THREE HOURS TO 30 MINUTES
A$20-billion (Dh73.5 billion) bridge connecting Hong Kong and Macau to the mainland Chinese city of Zhuhai is set to open this week, marking the completion of the longest sea-crossing bridge built, nine years after construction began.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to attend a ceremony in Zhuhai today, along with top officials from Hong Kong and Macau, with the bridge opening to public traffic tomorrow, CNN reported yesterday.
The 55km bridge was originally due to open in 2016, but repeated delays pushed that to this year.
It is a key element of China’s plan for a Greater Bay Area covering 56,500 square km across southern China, and encompassing 11 cities, including Hong Kong and Macau, that are home to a combined 68 million people.
Proponents of the idea say the bridge will cut journey times between the cities from three hours to 30 minutes, enabling commuters and tourists to easily move around the region.
Special permit
Despite the focus on drive time however, private car owners in Hong Kong will not be able to cross the bridge without a special permit.
Most drivers will have to park at the Hong Kong port, switching to shuttle bus or special hire cars once they are through immigration. Shuttle buses cost $8-$10 for a single trip.
The bridge project has come in for fierce criticism in Hong Kong, where there was little public demand or appetite for greater links to either Macau or Zhuhai, and fears the city will be swamped by tourists from mainland China, CNN said. In 2016, Hong Kong saw 56.7 million tourist arrivals, compared to 37.6 million for the United Kingdom, a much larger country.
The project has been dogged by delays, budget overruns, corruption prosecutions and the deaths of construction workers.
While supporters promote it as an engineering marvel, others see the multi-billion dollar project as a costly white elephant designed to further integrate the semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong into the mainland.
Bus companies supposed to be operating on the bridge complained they were in the dark. “At such short notice and without any details, how can we make the necessary logistic arrangements?” Eddie Choi, a spokesman for coach operator One Bus Hong Kong Macau, told the South China Morning Post.
An official from the bridge authority said the bridge would be “considered open” from today and confirmed there would be access that day to registered cars and buses, but did not elaborate.