Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge

Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge

武汉长江大桥
Coordinates30°32′59″N 114°17′18″E / 30.5497°N 114.2882°E / 30.5497; 114.2882
Carries4 lanes Highway
2 tracks of the Beijing–Guangzhou Railway
CrossesYangtze River
LocaleWuhan, Hubei, China
Other name(s)Wuhan Great Bridge
Characteristics
DesignTruss bridge
Total length1,670 metres (5,480 ft)
Width22.5 metres (74 ft)
Longest span128 metres (420 ft)
History
Constructed byWuhan Great Bridge Engineering Bureau
Construction start1 September 1955
Construction endSeptember 1957
Opened15 October 1957
Location
Map
Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge

The Wuhan Yangtze Great Bridge (simplified Chinese: 武汉长江大桥; traditional Chinese: 武漢長江大橋; pinyin: Wǔhàn Chángjiāng Dàqiáo), commonly known as Wuhan First Yangtze Bridge, is a double-deck road and rail bridge across the Yangtze River in Wuhan, in Central China. At its completion in 1957, the bridge was the easternmost crossing of the Yangtze, and was often referred to as the "First Bridge of the Yangtze".

The bridge extends 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) from Turtle Hill in Hanyang, on the northern bank of the Yangtze, to Snake Hill in Wuchang, on the southern bank of the Yangtze. Plans for the bridge's construction were first made in 1910. A total of four exploratory surveys were made between 1913 and 1948 to identify a suitable site, but economic limitations and the combination of World War II and the Chinese Civil War prevented the bridge's building until the 1950s. Actual construction began in September 1955 and was completed in October 1957.

The upper level of the bridge is a two-way, four-lane automobile highway. The lower level is a double-track railway on the Beijing-Guangzhou railway line.