Sai Van Bridge, Cable-stayed bridge in Macau Peninsula, China
The Sai Van Bridge is a cable-stayed structure spanning 2200 meters across the Inner Harbor, connecting Macau Peninsula to Taipa Island. The two-level design accommodates multiple vehicle lanes on the upper deck while the lower deck can support rail transport.
Completed in 2004, the bridge was innovative at the time as the first prestressed concrete structure of its engineering type. Its opening connected previously separated areas of Macau by establishing a permanent crossing over the Inner Harbor.
The bridge's name was chosen in a government naming contest held from August to September 2004; on 6 December 2004 the third Macau–Taipa bridge was officially named Sai Van Bridge. Its two 85-metre pylons, each a double arch, are shaped to evoke the letter M (the initial of Macau in English and Portuguese), the Roman numeral III and the Arabic numeral 3, marking it as the third bridge. The Olympic torch crossed the bridge on 3 May 2008, and it has hosted athletics and marathon events.
The lower deck opens only when the upper deck is closed during a No. 8 typhoon signal, and it closes again under No. 9 or No. 10 signals. It is reserved for light cars and emergency vehicles, with a 20–40 km/h limit. The upper deck carries six lanes with a 40–80 km/h limit.
The structure pioneered the use of a double-deck concrete design combining vehicle lanes with rail capacity in a single framework. This combination allowed multiple forms of transport to share the same crossing.
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