At 9:58 on August 17, 2021, at the construction site of the Tongjiang Sino-Russian Heilongjiang Railway Bridge, with the installation of the last set of track cleats at the Sino-Russian quasi-track interface, the first cross-river railway bridge between China and Russia- The Tongjiang Sino-Russian Heilongjiang Railway Bridge has achieved track laying and connection, laying a solid foundation for the opening and operation of the entire bridge.

Northeast Revitalization

The newly built Tongjiang Sino-Russian Heilongjiang Railway Bridge is located between Tongjiang City, Heilongjiang Province, China and Ningskoye City, Russia. The total length of the bridge is 7,194 meters, the approach bridge is 4979 meters, and the main bridge is 2,215 meters, of which the main bridge in China is 1886. Meters, the main bridge in Russia is 329 meters long, with a designed operating speed of 100 kilometers per hour and an annual cargo delivery capacity of 21 million tons. The bridge project started in February 2014. The main part of the Chinese section was completed in October 2018. In July 2019, the Chinese section completed all the acceptance procedures including static acceptance, dynamic acceptance, preliminary acceptance and safety assessment.

The construction of the Tongjiang Sino-Russian Heilongjiang Railway Bridge has created many records. It is the first cross-river railway bridge connecting China and Russia. It is the first domestically and internationally to use steel truss girder to lay a four-track track ballastless track slab construction program. During the bridge design stage, the Chinese and Russian engineers and technicians conducted in-depth and detailed studies on the bridge and track design standards of the two countries, and finally jointly determined the design plan for the use of sleeve rails, which can adapt to the different standard gauges of China and Russia (Chinese gauge 1435 Mm, the Russian gauge is 1520 mm). During the construction period, the participating units solved difficult problems such as hard ice, frozen soil, and sand gushing, and innovated anti-corrosion coating, high-bolt construction, and deep-water cofferdam anti-collision technology in high-cold areas, ensuring the smooth progress of the bridge construction.

The Tongjiang Sino-Russian Heilongjiang Railway Bridge connects to the three northeastern provinces in the south and radiates the whole country. It connects to the following Ningskoye Port in Russia and the Russian Far East Railway through the Tongjiang Port to the north, and connects to the hinterland of Russia through the Trans-Siberian Railway to the west. The railway transportation channel between China and Russia will also open up a new Eurasian combined transport channel from West to Europe.

Keywords: One Belt One Road, engineering construction, engineering news, engineering construction information

After the completion and opening to traffic, the railway distance from Heilongjiang to Moscow via Tongjiang is 809 kilometers shorter than that of Suifenhe Port, saving 10 hours of transportation time, which will greatly alleviate the transportation pressure of Manzhouli and Suifenhe railway ports, and effectively help the comprehensive revitalization and all-round revitalization of the Northeast region. Deep integration into the One Belt One Road is of great significance to further building a new highland of openness and cooperation and promoting the high-quality development of Sino-Russian economic and trade.Editor/Xing Wentao