Girder‑erection Access Opens on Longest Super‑large Bridge of Eastern Guangdong Intercity Railway

According to Guangdong Provincial State‑owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the girder‑erection passage on the super‑large bridge between Didu Station and Sangpushan Station has been completed recently. This key infrastructure is invested and developed by Eastern Guangdong Intercity Railway Company, a subsidiary of Guangdong Railway Investment Group.

Eastern Guangdong Intercity Railway forms a vital section of the “one‑loop plus one‑ray” intercity rail network for eastern Guangdong. The whole line runs roughly 140 kilometres with a design operating speed of 160 kilometres per hour. Stretching 9 602.04 metres, the Didu‑Sangpushan super‑large bridge ranks as the longest bridge along the whole route. 

Its average pier height stands at 11 metres, with the maximum pier reaching 14 metres. Following National Highway G206, the bridge runs south‑to‑north across Didu Town and Paotai Town in Rongcheng District of Jieyang City, and 7.8 kilometres of the bridge section lies above the national highway corridor.

The bridge features an intricate structural layout, incorporating seven continuous cantilever beam sets, two sets of turnout continuous beams, multiple frame pier cross‑beams and variable‑width simply‑supported beams. The construction route passes underneath the existing Xiamen‑Shenzhen railway. Complex site conditions and overlapping on‑site operations created substantial technical management challenges for the project.

The construction team set up dedicated technical working groups and formulated special construction schemes. A newly‑adopted lightweight quickly‑assembled intelligent hanging basket was deployed for cantilever works. Compared with conventional hanging‑basket equipment, this lighter modular system allows faster on‑site assembly and intelligent travelling movement. 

It cuts overall construction costs, reduces safety risks arising from high‑altitude work, and delivers simultaneous improvements in building efficiency and site‑safety supervision. Construction sequences were optimised to maintain precise tolerances for continuous beams, turnout beams, simply‑supported members and frame piers during the main‑structure works.

Once fully completed, the intercity railway will deliver a 30‑minute commuter circle covering the central urban areas of Shantou, Chaozhou and Jieyang, alongside a one‑hour transport loop across eastern Guangdong. 

Major economic zones, densely‑populated zones and transport hubs across the three cities will be closely linked. Improved connectivity will strengthen transport links between eastern Guangdong, the Guangdong‑Hong‑Kong‑Macao Greater Bay Area, the Western Straits Economic Zone and East China. The railway will provide robust transport support for regional integration and high‑quality local development. 

The construction team will stick to annual construction milestones, reinforce safety and quality management, refine arrangements for overlapping operations, and seize favourable construction periods to carry out deck‑surface works, ancillary facilities and subsequent box‑girder erection.