DIGEST | ISSUE 21HZMB is the world’s longest sea crossing bridge. It took nine years to complete theconstruction of the whole project and was originally set to finish by the end of 20162.However, the HZMB officially opened to the public on 24 October 20183.HZMB is designed to have a 120-year life span and it cost a staggering RMB126.9 Billion (approximately US$18.3 Billion).It has a six-lane carriageway with three lanes each side.HZMB significantly reduces the travel time between Hong Kong and Zhuhai:GUANGZHOU - SHENZHEN HONG KONG EXPRESS RAILLINK (XRL)Guangzhou - Shenzhen - Hong KongExpress Rail Link (XRL) is an expressrail (total length of 140km) thatconnects Hong Kong (West Kowloon)to Guangzhou (Shibi) via Futian andLonghua in Shenzhen and Humen inDongguan.The Hong Kong section of the XRL isa 26km underground rail-run fromthe terminus in West Kowloon Station(WKT) to the boundary at Huanggang7(Figure 4). XRL is operated by theMTR Corporation8 and train speedscan reach 200km/h in the Hong Kongsection and up to a maximum of350km/h in the Mainland section.Fig. 2., extracted fromextracted from www.hzmb.gov.hk/en/info/sea%20crossing-EN.pdfHZMB was an extremely complex project that faced numerous challenges and difficulties during construction. The steel bridgedeck at the main bridge (Figure 3) used a total of 420,000 tons of steel (the equivalent of 60 Eiffel Towers) and the bridge deckarea is 700,000-metres square (the equivalent of 98 football pitches)4. As the main bridge was constructed in open sea, mostof the bridge structures were precast and prefabricated off-site and delivered to site for erection using an integral erectionmethod5.Another challenge was theconstruction of the tunnelworks at the Hong Konglink road section as thebox jacking operation wasexecuted underneath theAirport Express Line (AEL).This involved excavationworks and casting tunnelbox segments in a deep andnarrow shaft. The workswere completed with a highdegree of precision usinga computerised system tosynchronise the movementsof the hydraulic jacks6.The construction work for the HongKong section was divided into 20 majorcivil contracts and awarded to 17contractors9 due to the complexity ofthe construction works.However, this type of contractarrangement involved a high degree ofinterfacing and coordination betweenthe parties.One of the major setbacks on thisproject was the difficulty encounteredat the WKT and the cross-boundarytunnelling works which were subjectto unexpected construction conditionsand a shortage of labour.The mega link has beendescribed as a “blood andsweat project” by manypeople in the building sector.Fig. 3., extracted from www.hzmb.gov.hk/en/info/sea%20crossing-EN.pdf20The construction works commencedin 2010 and were completed in 2018,a three-year delay from the originalcompletion date (4 August 2015). Theofficial opening of the XRL to the publicwas on 23 September 2018.The completion of the XRL hassignificantly reduced the travel timebetween Hong Kong and major Chinesecities. For example, it takes 14 minutesfrom WKT to Futian (previously circa100 minutes via numerous forms oftransportation). As of today, people caneasily travel to 58 Mainland Chinesestations from Hong Kong10. Overall, theGreater Bay Area development initiativewill benefit the Chinese economy andboost internationalisation, both animportant part of the next stage inChina’s economic growth.Fig. 4., extracted from www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong_Kong_Express_Rail_LinkSo, to conclude with another well-known Chinese saying .‘It requires a joint effort to achieve anything worthwhile’.https://www.bayarea.gov.hk/en/outline/plan.htmlhttps://www.thestandard.com.hk/section-news/section/11/173208/Bridge-toopen-in-one-go-despite-HK-delays3. https://www.scmp.com/video/china/2169817/chinese-president-xi-jinpingdeclares-hong-kong-zhuhai-macau-bridge-open4. https://www.hzmb.gov.hk/tc/project/main-bridge.html5. https://www.hzmb.gov.hk/tc/project/main-bridge.html6. https://www.hzmb.gov.hk/tc/project/hk-link-road.html7. https://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/policy/transport/issues/cbt_4.htm8. MTR Corporation Limited is a majority state-owned Hong Kong company9. https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201405/28/P201405280337.htm10. https://www.highspeed.mtr.com.hk/en/about/hsr-intro.html1.2.21
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