New Suzhou Creek bridge structure completed
The main steel structure of the Changping Road Bridge over the Suzhou Creek is completed on Friday.
The steel structure of a new Suzhou Creek bridge was completed on Friday and will create a new west-east thoroughfare that aims to help relieve downtown traffic congestion.
The Changping Road Bridge in Jing’an District, with about 60 meters crossing the creek, will have six vehicle lanes as well as a pedestrian and cyclist lane on each side, the SCG Shanghai Mechanized Construction Group Co said on Friday.
The bridge, dubbed the “Eye of Suzhou Creek” due to its stylish design, is expected to become the 30th bridge crossing the 21-kilometer-long downtown Suzhou Creek upon its completion by the end of 2019.
Drivers and pedestrians will no longer need to detour to the nearest Changshou or Hengfeng road bridges which are over 1.3 kilometers away from each other, Gong Liang, executive deputy manager for the project, said.
The bridge will also better connect Jing’an with Putuo, Yangpu and Hongkou districts through Changping, Hengtong, Qufu, Tiantong, Changzhi and Changyang roads, Gong added. Changping and Hengtong roads on both sides of the creek will be expanded and linked up with the bridge.
It is expected to help relieve the traffic flow of the still under-construction Beiheng Passage, a 19-kilometer road to link Changning, Putuo, Jing’an, Huangpu, Hongkou and Yangpu districts, by up to 20 percent.
An artistic rendition of the Changping Road Bridge, dubbed the “Eye of Suzhou Creek.”
The main steel structure of the Changping Road Bridge over the Suzhou Creek is completed on Friday.
The arched steel bridge features white ribbon-like decorations that resemble the shape of an eye. Pedestrians can sit on the steel bars on the bridge to watch the riverside scenery of the creek.
Apart from the Changping Road Bridge, 19 new bridges over the creek are on the city agenda, meaning the total number of bridges will reach 48, according to the urban planning authority.
These new bridges for pedestrians and bikes will be distinctive in design and style, making the creek a “bridge museum,” the city urban planning and natural resources bureau said. They include four newly planned bridges at Wen’an Road, Jingyang Road near the M50 creative park, and Mengqingyuan Park.
The average distance between bridges will be reduced to 100 meters on the section near the Bund, 120 meters for other downtown sections and 200 meters for the area within the Outer Ring Road, according to the bureau.
The Changping Road Bridge in Jing’an District connects Changping and Hengtong roads.
