Extending the Possibilities: The New Shibanpo Bridge, in Chongqing, China, Sets a World Record for the Length of its Box Girder Main Span: 330m

This article describes the construction of the new Shibanpo Bridge that crosses the Yangtze River in China's city of Chongqing. The original Shibanpo Bridge, which was constructed in 1981, was designed to carry an average of 20,000 vehicles per day. Traffic growth over the years hiked the volume up to 80,000 vehicles. The demand for increased capacity led to the decision to construct a new bridge; aesthetic and engineering issues necessitated maintaining the same span arrangement, with piers adjacent to each other. Navigational concerns and the ability to adequately accommodate river traffic forced the deletion of one of the piers in the new structure. Since the original concrete box girder design had to be kept, the deletion of a pier meant that the final design solution would involve a steel box girder for the 330m main span, while the remaining portions would be made of concrete. The article describes in detail the how the various design, economic, and logistical issues were handled, as well as the engineering and construction methods that were used in the construction of the bridge.