The World’s Longest Sea Bridge Opens
The 55 kilometer long, world’s longest sea bridge was due to open in the year 2016, but because of certain delays, it took two more additional years to complete.
The bridge connecting Hong Kong and Macau to Zhuhai of the mainland China is ready to open this week. This is for the first time the longest sea-crossing bridge was ever built in the world. It took nine years to complete it, the building cost of the bridge is 20 billion dollars.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to attend the opening ceremony in Zhuhai on Tuesday in the presence of the top officials from Hong Kong and Macau, thereby dedicating the bridge to the public from Wednesday. The 55 kilometer long, world’s longest sea bridge was due to open in the year 2016, but because of certain delays, it took two more additional years to complete.
The bridge was a plan of China for having a Greater Bay Area covering 56,500 square kilometers across the south of China touching 11 major cities, including Hong Kong and Macau, which has combined population of 68 million people. The bridge also has its own advantages too, it will now cut the journey times between the cities from three hours to 30 minutes, which will help commuters as well as the tourists to move around the region with less time.
The transport Secretary of Hong Kong, Frank Chan said, “With the bridge, the traveling time between Hong Kong and the Western Pearl River Delta region will be shortened significantly, thereby bringing the Western Pearl River Delta region within three hours drive from Hong Kong”.
Though the private car owners of Hong Kong will not be able to cross the bridge without a special permit. The drivers will have to park their cars at the Hong Kong port, then switch to shuttle bus or special hire cars once they are through immigration. Shuttle buses cost between $8 to $10 for a single trip.
The bridge project has been criticized by Hong Kong since its beginning, as the public demand for greater links to Macau and Zhuhai are not all necessary and the people fear that with the bridge tourists from the mainland China now will swamp into the city. In the year 2016 Hong Kong witnessed 56.7 million tourist arrivals in comparison to 37.6 million tourists for the UK, which is a much larger country.
The critics of the Chinese government see the bridge as a tool for Beijing to drag the Hong Kong city, which has an independent judiciary and semi-democratic legislature into its grip.
