China’s new Shenzhen-Zhongshan mega link carries high hopes for Greater Bay Area economy

Cross-sea span set to open at end of June will significantly cut travel times between the two cities, and is expected to deliver more balanced development

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The Lingdingyang Bridge, a key part of the new Shenzhen-Zhongshan link, is the world’s largest offshore steel box girder suspension bridge, according to the Shenzhen government. Photo: People’s Daily

Published: 9:00am, 19 Jun 2024

After seven years of construction, a massive connector spanning the Pearl River Delta – known as the Shenzhen-Zhongshan link – the newest component of a sprawling infrastructure plan for the Greater Bay Area, is due to open at the end of June, with hopes that it will stimulate closer economic integration in the mega city cluster.

The 24km (15 mile) cross-sea span, which will connect the city of Zhongshan with the tech hub of Shenzhen across the Pearl River estuary, comprises two bridges, two artificial islands and one undersea tunnel that is 6.8km long and 46 meters (151 feet) wide, making it the world’s largest and widest undersea steel shell concrete tube tunnel, according to the Shenzhen government website.

The Lingdingyang Bridge, a key part of the link, with a main span of 1,666 meters, is the world’s largest offshore steel box girder suspension bridge, the website said.

The two-way, eight-lane mega project is expected to shorten the drive from two hours to less than 30 minutes between the two cities, according to an article this month in China Highway, a magazine published by China Communications Construction Group.

One of the two artificial islands that make up part of the Shenzhen-Zhongshan link. Photo: Weibo

The connector is situated between two other major bridges – the Humen Bridge 30km to the north linking Guangzhou and Dongguan, and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge 31km to the south.

The 44.69 billion yuan (US$6.16 billion) project is expected to be a key link in the Greater Bay Area, a mega city plan designed on the scale of similar metropolitan areas in Tokyo Bay, New York and San Francisco.