Inter-island expressway bridge opens for traffic

The Zhoushan-Daishan Bridge in Zhejiang province opens to traffic on Wednesday. The 25.7-kilometer bridge, connecting Zhoushan Island and its outlying Daishan Island, is part of the Zhoushan Inter-Island Expressway, which spans 74 km, linking eight islands with eight bridges. YAO FENG/FOR CHINA DAILY

Zhoudai Bridge, linking Zhoushan and Daishan islands in Zhejiang province, opened for transportation on Wednesday, making it China's longest inter-island expressway bridge.

As one of the major transportation projects of Ningbo Zhoushan Port, the 25.7-kilometer bridge is part of the Zhoushan Inter-Island Expressway that spans 74 kilometers, linking eight islands with eight bridges.

With its construction starting from September 2017, Zhoudai Bridge, with an investment of 16.3 billion yuan ($2.56 billion), will shorten the travel time between Daishan and nearby Ningbo to around one hour.

A dragon dance is performed to celebrate the opening of the Zhoushan-Daishan Bridge in Zhejiang province on Wednesday. YAO FENG/FOR CHINA DAILY

"It used to be very inconvenient for us to travel outside the island as the ferry used to be the only means of transportation. Now, we can depart from Daishan at noon, visit Ningbo in the afternoon and return home for dinner in the evening, which largely facilitates our daily lives," said Sun Haihua, a resident of Daishan county in Zhoushan.

After the opening of the bridge, it is more conducive for fishermen in Daishan to sell fresh fishes at a good price, according to Yu Zhongwan, director of Zhoushan Yutongxian, a seafood market e-commerce platform.

Fang Xiaoying and Yu Yin contributed to this story.