China Daily: “More than 21,600 hazardous bridges in China have been renovated in the past 12 years, and transportation authorities across the country are attaching more importance to this issue, said the Ministry of Transport.
“Bridge construction and safety is an issue of public concern and one of the key tasks of transport departments across the country,” said a statement published on Tuesday on the ministry’s website.
A total of 43.88 billion yuan ($7.05 billion), including 17 billion yuan from the ministry, was invested in the renovation of 21,610 hazardous bridges from 2001 to 2012, curbing the high incidence of bridge accidents, according to the statement.
By the end of 2011, China had nearly 689,000 bridges, with almost 58,000 being large or ultra-large. The length of these two categories accounts for 51.8 percent of the total length of China’s bridges.
“With some bridges undergoing long-term, overburdened operation, we have been witnessing a high incidence of bridge accidents in our country,” the ministry said.
“Overloaded vehicles or those carrying items, which may damage the road surface, have often been observed, making it increasingly difficult to maintain the safety of bridges.”
A succession of high-profile bridge accidents in recent years has attracted a wave of attention and criticism from the public.”
via Unsafe bridges get a face-lift nationwide |Society |chinadaily.com.cn.
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