Tian'e-Bama Expressway achieves full-line connection

An aerial photo of the Hongshui River Bridge. [Photo/Hechi Daily]

Recently, the main line of the Tian'e-Bama Expressway was fully connected, laying a solid foundation for its opening later this year.

The 104.9-kilometer-long expressway is a major project promoted by the autonomous region, running through Donglan county and Fengshan county to connect Tian'e county and Bama Yao autonomous county. Ground was broken on the project on March 29.

It now ranks as one of the highway projects with the largest tunnel section under construction in Guangxi, its route crossing the path of numerous underground rivers and karst caves. Bridges and tunnels account for 66.6 percent of the main line.

On March 24, the 1,099-meter-long Hongshui River Bridge, the control project of the Tian'e-Bama Expressway project, achieved closure, marking the completion of the 97th bridge along the Tian'e-Bama Expressway.

On April 7, the Shi'erpo Tunnel was connected to rank as the expressway's 55th tunnel.

The roadbed engineering has been finished while the pavement engineering is 68 percent complete and the bridge and tunnel engineering are both 99.9 percent done. The mechanical and electrical engineering work still has a way to go (68 percent complete), while the traffic safety engineering work is 51 percent complete.

Total investment in the expressway is 25.19 billion yuan ($3.67 billion). It will have six lanes in both directions and a designed driving speed of 100 km per hour. After opening to traffic, it will support the development of the city's tourism industry and assist in the construction of the so-called New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor.