Kinmen Bridge

The Kinmen Bridge[1] (Chinese: 金門大橋; pinyin: Jīnmén Dàqiáo) is a cross-sea bridge currently under construction in Kinmen, Fujian, Republic of China (Taiwan). Once finished, it will connect Greater Kinmen Island and Lieyu Island.[2]

Kinmen Bridge

金門大橋
Coordinates24°27′03″N 118°16′59″E
LocaleJinning and Lieyu in Kinmen, Fujian, Republic of China (Taiwan)
Characteristics
DesignBridge
Total length5.4 km
Width15 meters
No. of lanes4
History
Construction start2013
Construction end2021 (expected)
Construction costNT$9 billion
Location

History

On 28 February 2010, this project of constructing the bridge was approved by Council for Economic Planning and Development of the Republic of China.[3] On 9 January 2011, President Ma Ying-jeou traveled to Kinmen to host the groundbreaking ceremony.[4] The bridge construction commenced in 2013. But, on 29 June 2016, the construction work was suspended when the Government of the Republic of China terminated the contract with Kuo Teng Construction Co., the construction company who had been building the bridge, due to the poor construction management which had caused the project to be seriously behind schedule.

During Augusts 2016, the Taiwan Area National Expressway Engineering Bureau invited new contractor companies to complete the remaining project. The bureau announced the tender winner on 31 August 2016.[5] Work resumed on 28 December 2016 and now is expected to be completed by 25 September 2020. However in February 2017, Public Construction Commission Minister Wu Hong-mo had requested the bridge completion date to be moved earlier to the end of 2019.[6]

In August 2019, the last pile of the bridge was installed and the bridge is expected to be completed by mid 2021.[7]

Architecture

The bridge will link Jinning Township on Greater Kinmen Island and Lieyu Township on Lieyu Island. It will span over 5.4 km in length and supported by five towers, each with separation distance of 280 meters.[8] The bridge surface will have a width of 15 meters, which will consist of two lanes for vehicles, one lane for pedestrian and one lane for bicycle.[9]

Budget

A total of NT$7.39 billion was originally budgeted for the bridge construction, in which NT$3.96 billion came from the central government and NT$3.43 billion came from Kinmen County Government. After repeated delays, the budget blew out to about NT$9 billion. Performance bond from Kuo Teng Construction Co. was taken to cover the extra cost incurred. However, there is still a shortfall of NT$500 million.[6]

See also

References
  1. "President Ma: Construction of Kinmen Bridge Signifies Kinmenese Hope" 馬總統：大橋興建代表金門人民希望 (in Chinese and English). Translated by Wilson Chou. Kinmen Daily News. 24 January 2011. Retrieved 24 August 2019. President Ma explained the reason for building a bridge linking Kinmen and Lieyu (Little Kinmen) as follows: With the resident population of Lieyu Township being only between 2000-3000, transportation is not the primary reason. With what the central government most concerned is Kinmen's status in the overall cross-strait relation and its competition with Xiamen. He believed that with the completion of the construction, Kinmen Bridge will become a marvelous tourist landmark in Kinmem [sic]. 馬總統說，烈嶼鄉的常住人口不過兩、三千人，蓋橋除了考量大、小金門的交通，最主要是看重金門在整個兩岸關係的地位，以及未來面對廈門的競爭。他相信，金門大橋的興建，將成為金門觀光的絕佳地標。
  2. "Premier Lin promises financial support for Kinmen Bridge plan".
  3. 金門日報 (1 January 2001). "英文原來這樣說(English Is A Piece of Cake)".
  4. 金門日報 (1 January 2001). "英文原來這樣說(English Is A Piece of Cake)".
  5. "Bridge builder faces termination - Taipei Times".
  6. "Expedited completion of Kinmen Bridge requested - Taipei Times". www.taipeitimes.com.
  7. Shan, Shelley (12 August 2019). "Kinmen Bridge to open by mid-2021, Minister Lin says". Taipei Times. Retrieved 12 August 2019.
  8. "Premier promises financial support for Kinmen Bridge project | Politics | FOCUS TAIWAN - CNA ENGLISH NEWS". focustaiwan.tw.
  9. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-04-27. Retrieved 2017-04-27.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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