Aerial photos show construction of world’s highest bridge

Footage has surfaced that gives a bird’s-eye view of a Chinese bridge that is set to become the world’s tallest.

The Huajing Grand Canyon Bridge in the southwestern province of Guizhou will tower 625 meters (2,050 feet) above the Beipan River, double the height of the Eiffel Tower.

Those crossing its 2,890-meter length (9,481 feet) the canyon valley will be able to cut their travel time by over an hour to just one minute, which the government hopes will boost tourism and spur “rural revitalization,” according to the state-owned China Global Television Network.

The aerial camera captures a bridge tower mounted with cranes, with the steel main cables stretching to another, apparently finished tower.

Workers can be seen on one of the two edge girders lying lengthwise along the side bridge deck, with the rugged landscape of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau in the background.

China has embarked on many ambitious infrastructure projects, and bridges are no exception. Of the tallest 20 bridges on earth, 18 can be found in the country, according to Highestbridges.com, a website run by engineering aficionados.

The project began in 2021, with work on the last tower finished in October 2023 after more than 670 days, state media previously reported.

The suspension bridge is slated for completion next year, Xinhua said. Newsweek reached out to the Chinese foreign ministry with a written quest for comment.

Alimak, a Stockholm-based firm that provided equipment for the construction, previously said the project had encountered “distinctive challenges.” “Being in a plateau region intensifies atmospheric temperature differences between day and night, leading to the likelihood of severe convective weather and consistent valley winds throughout the year,” a company representative said.

Alimak did not immediately respond to a written request for comment.

The current highest bridge in the world in terms of deck height is the Duge Bridge, completed in 2016. It stretches 4,396 feet from Guizhou and over the Beipan into neighboring Yunnan province. The four-lane cable-stayed bridge has a deck height of 1,854 feet and a main span of 2,360 feet.

Another lofty suspension bridge, the Yongchang Lancanjiang Bridge over the Lancangjiang River in Yunnan province, is planned to come in at a slightly lower 2,001-foot height. The project is slated for completion in 2027.

Guizhou is one of China’s less densely populated provinces with a population of 38.5 million people, smaller than the Shanghai metropolitan area.

The province is rich in natural resources, with forestry and mining important to the local economy. The province is also known for its natural beauty and is a major destination for mountain tourism.