Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge

Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge 南京长江大桥
Coordinates
Carries	Beijing–Shanghai Railway National Highway 104 National Highway 205 National Highway 312
Crosses	Yangtze River
Locale	China: Nanjing, Jiangsu
Owner	People's Government of Nanjing Shanghai Railway Bureau
Characteristics
Design	Double-decked truss bridge
Material	Steel
Total length	Main Bridge: 1,576 metres (5,171 ft) Highway: 4,588 metres (15,052 ft) Railway: 6,772 metres (22,218 ft)
Width	Highway Bridge: 19.5 metres (64 ft) (with 4.5 metres (15 ft) pedestrian path) Railway: 14 metres (46 ft)
Height	70 metres (230 ft)
Longest span	160 metres (525 ft)
Number of spans	10
Clearance below	24 metres (79 ft)
History
Designer	Ministry of Railways
Construction begin	18 January 1960
Construction end	Railway: 30 September 1968 Highway: 29 December 1968
Replaces	Yangtze River Railway Ferry
Statistics
Daily traffic	80,000 vehicles 200 pairs of trains (2011)
Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge Location in Jiangsu

The Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge (Chinese: 南京长江大桥; pinyin: Nánjīng Chángjiāng Dàqiáo) is a double-decked road-rail truss bridge across the Yangtze River between Pukou and Xiaguan in Nanjing, China. Its upper deck is part of China National Highway 104, spanning 4,588 metres (15,052 ft). Its lower deck, with a double-track railway, is 6,772 metres (22,218 ft) long, and completes the Beijing-Shanghai Railway, which had been divided by the Yangtze for decades. Its right bridge consists of nine piers, with the maximum span of 160 metres (525 ft) and the total length of 1,576 metres (5,171 ft). The bridge carries approximately 80,000 vehicles and 200 trains per day.

The bridge was completed and open for traffic in 1968. It was the third bridge over the Yangtze after the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge and the Chongqing Baishatuo Yangtze River Bridge. It was the first heavy bridge designed and built using Chinese expertise.

Suicide site

See also: List of suicide sites

The Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge has surpassed the San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge as the most popular suicide site in the world, with more than 2,000 suicides estimated by 2006. The majority of those who commit suicide at the bridge come from outside of Nanjing. Precise statistics are unknown, as many bodies are never recovered and police do not include among the total deaths people who have jumped off the bridge, only to miss the water and hit the riverbanks below. Police records from 2007 showed that 100 to 200 people are "rescued or restrained" each year on the bridge.

A local man, Chen Si (Chinese: 陈思), has been hailed as a hero for saving the lives of more than 300 people planning to jump off the bridge. Since 2004, Chen has devoted his free time to patrolling the bridge to help anyone in distress, including follow-up phone calls for support and offering them a place to stay in his extra bedroom.

A feature documentary has been made about Chen Si and some of the people he has saved. It also goes into some of the reasons why so many people come here to try and end their lives. The film, titled Angel of Nanjing, has won several awards.

Gallery

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  Vehicles on the bridge

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  Statue of first Yangtze river bridge at Nanjing

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  Scenery on the river

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  Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge seen from the upstream right bank

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  Perspective of the double-column frame piers of the railway bridge approach structure

See also

• Yangtze River bridges and tunnels
• Beijing–Shanghai Railway
• Rail transport in China
• Passenger rail transport in China

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

• 纪录片《南京长江大桥》 Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge Documentary (Chinese language) (1969)
• How to get to the Yangtze River Bridge
• Yangtze River Bridge: The Historic Landmark of Modern Nanjing