Project Spotlight: Gotthard Base Tunnel, Switzerland

The longest ocean-crossing bridge in the world, the Hangzhou Bay Bridge is an S-shaped stayed-cable bridge with six lanes in both directions that shortens the distance between Shanghai and Ningbo by 120 kilometers. The 36 kilometer long bridge required a great number of new techniques, new materials, new equipment and new theories due to the large scale and design of the project. It took close to 600 experts and a total of nine years to design the bridge. The Hangzhou Bay Bridge is expected to boost the economic development of the Yangtze River Delta, also called the Golden Industrial Triangle. Work on the bridge began in June 2003 and was completed in June 2007. The bridge was opened to the public in May 2008 and carried about 50,000 vehicles per day in its first year of operation. The total project cost was approximately $1.5 billion.