Dar es Salaam Kigamboni cable-stayed bridge nears completion
DAR ES SALAAM Tanzania (Xinhua) -- The 680-meter-long Kigamboni Bridge, the longest cable-stayed bridge in East Africa, will be joined in two months, a Chinese manager of the project has said.
The cross-sea bridge, which connects Kurasini and Kigamboni areas in Tanzania's commercial capital Dar es Salaam, is under construction by China Railway Construction Engineering Group (CRCEG) and China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group (CRMBEG).
"If all goes well, the sections of the bridge will be joined in two months," said Zhang Bangxu, business manager of the project which also includes a 5.7-kilometer-long road connecting the bridge.
After its completion, the Kigamboni Bridge will offer people one more choice to travel between the two areas which are being divided by a narrow gulf, he said, adding that through the advanced toll collection system of the bridge, which is imported from Dubai, people will spend much less time than traveling by ferry.
According to Zhang, a number of new materials and techniques have been used in constructing of the bridge.
"We're using cables with the highest strength in the world, which were tested at a material testing laboratory in Chicago," said Li Haihong, production manager of the project.
For this is a single plane cable-stayed bridge, the cables have to be very strong to bear the weight of the bridge deck, he said.
As for concrete, he said that the use of special mixed concrete has made the bridge towers extremely strong.
"This is the No. 1 cable-stayed bridge in East Africa," Li said.
The construction of the 135-million-U.S. dollars bridge is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
Source:
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