The Bãi Cháy Bridge (Vietnamese: Cầu Bãi Cháy) is a cable-stayed bridge on Highway 18, connecting Hồng Gai with Bãi Cháy over the Cửa Lục straits, separating Cửa Lục Bay with Hạ Long Bay, on the territory of Hạ Long city, Quảng Ninh province, Vietnam. It is the first, and at the time of its inauguration, the longest central-line cable-stayed bridge in Vietnam.
Design
Drone shot of Bãi Cháy bridge in 2023
The bridge has two outer span of reinforced pre-stressed concrete box beams, which are the widest of the world for this type of bridge. The towers are located on a huge pneumatic caisson foundation system, a modern construction technology first applied in Vietnam on this project. The bridge was constructed using a balanced cantilever technology, wherein the bridge beams reaching out over the water and the aligned ends connect at a head height of 50 metres (160 ft) above the water level. This technique assured that vessels could still operate normally during the construction process.
The bridge was completed and opened for traffic on December 2, 2006. The bridge was built to address the needs of the local people and tourists, and also to complete the discontinuation of the Bãi Cháy ferry line.
Technical details
Spans: 5 spans, main span of 435 meters (1,427 ft)
Navigable width: 150 meters (490 ft)
Load: Class A standard Japanese
Cost: about VND 1046 billions, 40-month construction period, to November 30, 2006 termination
Owner: Ministry of Transport, representing the owner: Project Management Unit 18-PMU18
Design consultant - monitor: Institute of bridges and structures in Japan
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