The completion of the pile foundation construction of the southern main tower of the Zhangjiagang Jingjiang Rugao Yangtze River Bridge marks a new stage in the construction of the bridge's cable tower.
The South Main Tower is about 1200 meters away from the river embankment and is the only water main tower among the four main towers of the two waterway bridges in the north and south of the bridge.
When completed, it will become the world's highest suspension bridge tower with a height of 350 meters. The group pile foundation consists of 97 single piles.
"Below the steel casing are piles one by one. The South Tower has a total of 97 piles, with a diameter of 2.8 meters and a length of 106.5 meters. They belong to the category of large diameter and ultra long cast-in-place piles. The top of the pile is approximately 7 meters underwater, and the bottom of the pile is approximately 120 meters deep from where we are standing, equivalent to the height of a 40-story building," said Xiao Fuchun, Deputy Project Production Manager of China Communications Second Navigation Bureau.
The complex geological conditions of the Yangtze River forced the project team to continuously optimize their plans and conduct targeted research. Eventually, 97 pile foundation construction tasks were completed within 109 days, setting a new record for construction.
The Zhangjiagang Jingjiang Rugao Yangtze River Bridge is of great significance for improving the regional skeleton road network, integrating development across rivers, and building a national comprehensive transportation hub.
