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About 50,000 tonnes of steel has been used in the construction of the bridge deck which is more than three times the quantity used in the Bank of China Building.
On completion the Tsing Ma Bridge, with a central span of 1,377 metres, will be the world's longest suspension bridge carrying both road and rail traffic. The double-decked bridge will carry six lanes of expressway on the upper deck and two rail tracks and two single emergency traffic lanes on the enclosed lower deck for use in bad weather.
Together with its sister bridge, the 820-metre long Kap Shui Mun Bridge, and the Ma Wan Viaduct, the Tsing Ma Bridge will form the Lantau Fixed Crossing which will provide the first road link between Lantau Island and the rest of Hong Kong.
Mr Lau said work on the Kap Shui Mun Bridge was also progressing well with the erection of its main span completed on March 18:
The Tsing Ma Bridge is being constructed by the Anglo Japanese Construction Joint Venture under a $7.2 billion contract awarded by the Highways Department in May 1992.
End
Tender award for river trade terminal
The Government announced today (Thursday) the tender award at a premium of $1,141,110,000 to the River Trade Terminal Company Limited for the design, development and operation of a river trade terminal at Area 38 of Tuen Mun.
The land grant is for a period up to 30 June 2047. It involves an area of about 65 hectares designated as Tuen Mun Town Lot No 393.
The successful tenderer is required to bring into operation cargo handling facilities at the terminal in two phases, initially with a capacity to handle not less than 2.1 million tonnes of cargo a year within 36 months from the date of the land grant and subsequently to increase the capacity to not less than 8.5 million tonnes a year within another 18 months.