...they can't even keep the regular bridges up.

Another Bridge Collapses in Eastern China Killing 3
Another in a long line of collapses






Despite huge investments in China’s infrastructure, another bridge has collapsed in Xiushui, Jiangxi, killing three people.

Two vehicles careened off the edge of bridge on Sunday at around 8:30 pm, falling to the river below. Three people inside a minivan were killed, and another two motorcyclists were injured and taken to hospital.

China has invested a lot of money in its transportation infrastructure in recent years, but old bridges requiring repair and maintenance are being neglected.

A 2013 investigation showed that 41 of Dongguan’s 172 bridges required major repair work, while another 16 were in such poor shape that they should be demolished and rebuilt. It is unknown whether this report spurred any action.

Bridges collapsing in China have caused dozens of fatalities over the past few years.

Last year June, one person was killed and another four were injured when a 130 meter-long section of an off-ramp collapsed eight meters under the weight of four fully-loaded transport trucks near Heyuan, Guangdong (shown below).offramp collapse guangdong jiangxi highwayIn 2014, another 11 people were killed in a Labor Day collapse that occurred on a bridge illegally under construction in Liangkengkou, Guangdong.

In 2013, 12 people died when two passenger buses plunged into the Tongkou River in Jiangyou, Sichuan during a bridge collapse. Also in 2013, 11 people died in Fengdu, Chongqing when a bridge over the Yangtze River collapsed.

Despite costing $300 million and only being ten months old, a raised highway in Heilongjiang collapsed in August 2012, killing three and injuring five. And in August 2007, 29 people died in in Hunan when a bridge over the Tuojiang River collapsed while still under construction.

Notwithstanding these tragedies, bridges continue to be prominently touted as part of China’s economic revitalization.

This month, a pedestrian bridge completely made out of transparent glass was opened at a tourist spot in Zhangjiajie, spanning 300 meters above a gorge. Meanwhile, at a cost of 87 million Hong Kong dollars, the HK-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge is expected to become the world’s longest sea bridge when it opens in late 2017.

Source: Shanghai Daily, Shanghai Daily, China Daily, China Daily, China, Xinhua, Xinhua, JS China, Yahoo News, The Telegraph, Daily Mail, Daily Mail, China, China Daily, People's Daily Online, The Telegraph, Yahoo News, Yahoo News, Sina
Photos: JS China,
Tags: Bridge Collapse, bridges, Infrastructure, Jiangxi, Transportation