Chongqing-Wanzhou High-Speed Railway Completes All 149 Bridges
In the early hours of May 27, 2026, the final steel-concrete composite beam was hoisted into position on the Shituo Yangtze River Bridge, marking the completion of all 149 bridges along the 251 km Chongqing-Wanzhou High-Speed Railway (Yuwan HSR). The milestone brings the project, a key component of China’s “Eight Vertical and Eight Horizontal” high-speed rail network, one step closer to opening, as reported by CCTV News.
A Landmark Achievement in Bridge Engineering
The Shituo Yangtze River Bridge, located in Yihe Town, Fuling District, is the signature structure of the project and an engineering marvel in its own right. Designed by the China Railway Major Bridge Reconnaissance & Design Institute and China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group, and constructed by China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group, the bridge set four world records.
According to Zhao Yuhang, design representative of the China Railway Major Bridge Reconnaissance & Design Institute, the bridge’s 6th main tower stands 253 meters tall, making it the world’s tallest double-column pylon. Its main span of 608 meters is the largest for a rail-road combined same-layer separated hybrid girder cable-stayed bridge. The bridge is also the world’s first rail-road combined double-column pylon cable-stayed bridge and the first to feature a same-layer separated main girder design, as reported by Science and Technology Daily.
Spanning 1,416.9 meters across the Yangtze River, the bridge carries both rail and road traffic on the same deck level. The highway portion, which will serve as part of Fuling’s ring expressway, is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.
Overcoming Complex Construction Challenges
Building the Shituo Yangtze River Bridge presented formidable challenges. The structure crosses the main navigation channel of the Yangtze River, requiring 47 cantilever steel girder segments for the main navigable span. Of these, 20 mid-span composite beams required full waterway closures, with the team working through 24 hours of continuous operation for the final closure.
Li Zhengqing, chief engineer of the Yuwan HSR Project at China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group, noted that the construction team faced complex processes, novel structures, high-altitude operation risks, and tight schedules. To overcome these challenges, the team applied integrated formwork intelligent construction methods for the high towers and integrated BIM digital twin technology, intelligent monitoring, and high-precision cable adjustment technologies to control alignment and stress throughout the process.
A Critical Link in China’s High-Speed Rail Network
The Chongqing-Wanzhou HSR is a 251 km line designed for 350 km/h operation, running from Chongqing枢纽 eastward along the Yangtze River through Banan, Fuling, Fengdu, and Zhongxian to Wanzhou North Station. The route includes two new stations: Fengdu North Station and Zhongxian Station.
As Chongqing Daily reports, the railway is a key component of China’s “Eight Vertical and Eight Horizontal” high-speed rail network, specifically the Beijing-Kunming and Baotou-Hainan corridors, and serves as an important supplement to the Yangtze River沿岸 high-speed rail corridor.
Economic and Regional Impact
Once operational, the railway will reduce travel time between Chongqing and Wanzhou to under one hour, down from the current journey of approximately two hours. This dramatic improvement in connectivity will strengthen links between the Three Gorges reservoir area urban cluster in northeastern Chongqing and the main urban area, directly supporting the development of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle — a national strategic priority to develop the region into China’s fourth major economic growth pole.
The railway passes through the Three Gorges reservoir area, a region that has faced economic challenges since the construction of the Three Gorges Dam. Improved transportation links are a key part of China’s strategy to boost economic development in this region.
What’s Next: Track Laying and Testing
With all tunnels, subgrades, and bridges now completed, the project has entered its final phases. Wang Jianhua, commander of the Fengdu Command Post at Yuwan Railway Company, confirmed that track laying and station construction are underway, with joint commissioning and testing expected to begin in the second half of 2026.
A Yuwan Railway Company official added that this closure milestone marks the transition to track laying and station construction, seizing critical time advantage for the full-line joint commissioning and testing phase.
The Chongqing-Wanzhou HSR is one of several high-speed rail projects under construction in western China as part of the national strategy to develop the western regions. Other concurrent projects include the Chengdu-Dazhou-Wanzhou HSR, Chongqing-Kunming HSR, and Xi’an-Chongqing HSR, all of which will form a dense high-speed rail network in southwestern China in the coming years.