Entering the fourth stop in Guizhou, approaching the Pingtang Grand Bridge

Previous posts have mentioned that Guizhou's karst topography makes transportation difficult. To become prosperous, roads must be built first. Building roads in Guizhou is not easy; sometimes you have to drill through mountains and enter tunnels, and sometimes you have to cross bridges over mountains. Therefore, driving in Guizhou, tunnels and bridges are common. This Pingtang Grand Bridge is one we pass by every day in the past few days, showing its importance. Pingtang Bridge, located in the Qiannan Buyi and Miao Autonomous Prefecture of Guizhou Province, China, is a major part of the Yuqing-Anlong Expressway (Qian Expressway S62). The bridge spans the Caoduhe Grand Canyon. Construction of the Pingtang Bridge began on April 29, 2016, and it opened to traffic on December 30, 2019. The Pingtang Bridge starts from the Tongzhou Interchange in the west, crosses the Caoduhe Grand Canyon, and ends at the Yazhou Interchange in the east. The bridge is 2135 meters long, with a main bridge width of 30.2 meters, and the bridge deck is a four-lane expressway. The Pingtang Grand Bridge is the highest bridge in the world, with all three cable towers exceeding 300 meters in height, and the tallest tower is higher than the Eiffel Tower, the symbol of the Paris Olympics. Because it is in a valley, it is said to be often shrouded in clouds and mist. Fortunately, we encountered a sunny day and were able to see its beauty. It is said that the elegant and slender cable towers are inspired by the local Buyi ethnic group's clothing design. We stopped at the 'Sky Bridge' service area to check in, and the kids made a bridge model by hand, which is a unique memory to take with us.