It is planned to launch the movement of freight transport through the Blagoveshchensk-Heihe cross-border bridge In November 2021

It is planned to launch the movement of freight transport through the Blagoveshchensk-Heihe cross-border bridge In November 2021

The opening of the Blagoveshchensk-Heihe cross-border bridge was planned to be carried out in 2020, however, due to the epidemiological situation, the launch date of the facility was shifted until November 2021․

The story of the bridge construction

Planning of the construction of the bridge, which has no analogues anywhere in the world, has lasted for a quarter of a century (since the 1960s). However, back at that time the idea did not receive approval from the party leadership. In 1988, the idea of a bridge arose again, and representatives of Russia and China turned to the leadership to approve the project. In 1995, an agreement was signed by the joint Governments on the construction of a cross-border bridge. However, at that time, the project was never "implemented". In 2012, the issue of bridge construction was raised again by the Governor of the Amur Region, and in 2013, during Dmitry Medvedev's visit to China, a protocol was signed on the construction of the bridge, which will effectively affect:

• ✓ on the development of bilateral economic relations;
• ✓ transportation costs for businesses will be reduced;
• ✓ the growth of cargo turnover between the two countries will increase;
• ✓ on the development of tourism.

The construction of the bridge itself began in 2016 and was completed in May 2019. The bridge is 1,080 meters long, 14.5 meters wide, and has three interchanges. The total cost of the bridge construction was 19 billion rubles.

Planned volumes of cargo transportation across the bridge

The Blagoveshchensk-Heihe International Bridge is an experimental platform for organizing cargo transportation. The volume of cargo transportation on the bridge, according to preliminary forecasts, will be around 630 trucks (6 million tons of cargo), and the annual flow of passengers will reach about 3 million people. In the future, this number may increase according to mutual agreement of the two parties.

The cost of travel on a cross-border bridge

For individuals, the fare on the Blagoveshchensk-Heihe cross-border bridge is 2,000 rubles while it is about 10 thousand rubles for legal entities.