World’s Longest Bridge to Connect China-Hong Kong-Macau’s Bond and Economy
The longest sea bridge connecting between Zhuhai (China mainland) - Hong Kong - Macau has officially held an opening ceremony on the Zhuhai side Tuesday, October 22, 2018 by Chinese President Xi Jinping, and will officially open to public use on October 24, 2018.
Come and forth between the mainland and its islands will be much easier now. Normally, it would take around four hours to travel between Zhuhai and Hong Kong, but the new bridge, 55km. long Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HZMB), will shorten the time to only 30-45 minute drive.
The connection between three major cities will give a major boost to the number of Chinese visitors. Zhuhai is the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong is world’s renown shopping place and famous dumpling, while the gambling fans can visit Macau with such ease. This will also enhance trade, finance, logistic and tourism for all parties.
HZMB has been in construction since 2009, using 400,000 tonnes of steel, enough to build 60 Eiffel Towers. The structure is supported by three cable-stayed bridges and designed to withstand winds of up to 340km/h, earthquakes and typhoons. A 6.7km undersea tunnel has been built to avoid disrupting shipping lanes, connected by two artificial islands.
Saying that the bridge is opened for public use, but in reality, crossers must obtain special permits, allocated by a quota system. There are no public transportation, no rail link, and all vehicles will pay a toll in renminbi (Chinese yuan).
All driving that occurs on the bridge will be in accordance with Chinese rules, which is on the right side of the road, not left as is the case in Hong Kong and Macau.
The bridge has costed about $20 billion (฿657 billion), and the Chinese officials say that the bridge could generate up to $1.44 trillion, while BBC estimated that Chinese government would earned $86 million in toll per year. However, the bridge maintenance has not been added to the number.
However, the information given by the government as of now only applies for Chinese, Macau and Hong Kong citizens. There are still no guideline for foreign tourists.