Tsing Ma Bridge, Suspension bridge in Ma Wan Channel, Hong Kong
Tsing Ma Bridge is a suspension bridge over Ma Wan Channel in Hong Kong that extends across 2160 meters and reaches a height of 206 meters above the water. The steel structure carries two stacked decks with a total of six lanes for vehicles and two tracks for trains.
Construction began in May 1992 and was completed in time for the opening of the new airport in 1997. The bridge became the first direct road and rail link between Chek Lap Kok airport island and the densely populated areas of Kowloon.
The name joins Tsing Yi and Ma Wan, the two islands the span links. The bridge has become a Hong Kong landmark: a marathon was run across it on 4 May 1997, before opening, with over 5,000 runners, and on 2 May 2008 the Olympic torch relay crossed part of the deck. In 2023 a public vote made "Tsing Ma" the replacement name for a retired typhoon.
The upper vehicle level is accessible for regular travelers, while the lower train deck is reserved exclusively for Airport Express trains. Views of the structure are best enjoyed from observation points on Tsing Yi and from the water, as visibility from the road itself is limited.
The bridge's climbing cranes had earlier been used to erect the HSBC Main Building and at Canary Wharf. Each main cable is 1.1 metres across and made of 33,400 steel wires 5.38 mm thick, spun in the air; together the cables run 160,000 km, enough to circle the Earth four times.
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