The huge £260m ghost bridge between 2 countries abandoned for 10 years | World | News
Designed to revolutionize travel between two major Asian countries, the bridge has actually been unfinished for over a decade and is instead used by local farmers to store their produce. Construction of this ghost bridge connecting China and North Korea across the Yalu River began in October 2011 and was completed three years later on the Chinese side. Funded entirely by China, the project cost the nation an eye-watering $350 million (£260 million), even including a new city being built at the end of the road.
But North Korea has so far failed to fulfill its end of the agreement. Despite its neighbor’s full financial aid, the North Korean tip remained untouched until 2019, leaving apartment complexes, stores and more in China empty. But now it looks like there are signs of renewed construction that could see the new connection finally become a reality. Years of inactivity have also caused buses and trucks to wait for hours to cross the Old Friendship Bridge, which was the original connection between the two countries and has not kept up with modern developments. Built in the 1930s and originally called the China-Korea Friendship Bridge, it is only wide enough for a single railway line and a single reversible lane. It cannot carry trucks weighing over 20 tons.
The narrow bridge, which serves as a connection between Beijing and Pyongyang, has become the busiest border port between the two countries in recent years as bilateral trade has increased. Meanwhile, signs of renewed construction at the new facility were perceived as a sign that China and North Korea were preparing to further increase trade.
North Korea approved plans to build the New Yalu River Bridge in 2010. The bridge will be part of a development project involving free trade zones on North Korean islands in the Yalu River. It is a cable-stayed bridge that spans 3.9 miles across the waterway.
Work on the bridge is now largely complete, despite North Korea having previously closed its borders and effectively become a hermit during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Construction on the Kim Jong Un side began in February 2020 but was halted the following August. After the border was closed, satellite images showed farmers using the abandoned road to dry their crops on tar.
However, construction resumed on the North Korean side of the New Yalu River Bridge, marking the first development move in five years. new images Planet Labs It showed evidence of new excavations and the emergence of blue-roofed structures believed to be related to long-term construction plans in the area.
According to a news report last month Daily NC The source in North Pyongan province said, “The exterior construction of the seven-storey building near the Sinuiju bridge (New Yalu River Bridge) has been completed.
This facility will serve as a “border control and trade complex”. The source said that “workers involved in exterior construction have withdrawn and interior construction crews are currently installing interior plaster, tiles and lighting. The current goal is to complete by early November.”
A North Korean source based in China said the same day: “Tender preparations are underway for stores in the Dandong customs building. This is seen as fast store owners trying to secure prime locations ahead of the opening of the New Yalu River Bridge. Internal construction is already underway in line with requests from approved tenants.”
The North Pyongan source added that preparations had accelerated since the Beijing summit in early September, interpreting this as a sign of trade expansion.
This comes as the world’s new highest bridge opened its doors earlier this month. The brand new £208 million Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge in southwest China aims to cut commute times from two hours to just one minute and took three and a half years to build.
