Qingdao Haiwan Bridge, Highway toll bridge across Jiaozhou Bay in Qingdao, China
The Qingdao Haiwan Bridge is a 26.7 km prestressed concrete highway bridge across Jiaozhou Bay, part of the 41.58 km Jiaozhou Bay Connection Project. Its deck is 35 m wide, carrying six lanes with two shoulders on two beams, supported by 5,238 concrete piles. The T-shaped layout links Huangdao and Licang districts, with a branch to Hongdao Subdistrict via a semi-directional T interchange.
The bridge was proposed by a local Communist Party official who was later dismissed for corruption, and designed by the Shandong Gaosu Group. It took four years and at least 10,000 workers to build, and it opened to traffic on 30 June 2011, the same day as the Jiaozhou Bay tunnel. Chinese media reported incomplete crash barriers, missing lighting and loose guard-rail nuts at opening; chief engineer Shao Xinpeng called the problems minor and the bridge safe.
The bridge's name is used for both the 26.7 km crossing and, in Guinness World Records listings, the 41.58 km Jiaozhou Bay Connection Project. Its builder, Shandong Gaosu Group, claimed the world's first oversea interchange and the largest number of oversea bored concrete piles. The Guinness title for longest bridge over water passed to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge in October 2018.
The bridge is a toll road for motor vehicles only; pedestrians and cyclists are not permitted. It cuts the drive between Licang and Huangdao by 30 km and 20 to 30 minutes compared with the coastal expressway. A branch links to Hongdao Subdistrict and Qingdao Liuting Airport.
More than 5,000 foundation piles were installed in marine conditions during construction, a record for a single project of this type. This technical achievement demonstrates the complexity of building infrastructure across water in this region.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,050 contributors worldwide.