74% of the installation of the steel girder of the main bridge has been completed, and the bridge is scheduled to be used by the end of 2018, according to the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge Maintenance and Reconstruction Project Department.
The old concrete girder will be replaced by the steel girder in the maintenance. Each steel girder weighs 30 tons with better integrity and strength than those of concrete girders. 297 of the 400 steel girders have been installed on the entire deck so far, accounting for 74% of the total. The remaining 103 steel girders are scheduled to be installed by the end of May this year. During the replacement, constructors will also initiate the demolition of the construction scaffolding.
According to the plan, all construction scaffolding will be removed by the end of August and the asphalt paving work on the bridge deck will start simultaneously. In addition, the installation of footpath railings for the bridge will be completed in June. And the installation of electromechanical and lighting systems and the renovation of the bridgehead will be finished in October. The paving of the asphalt deck will be completed in November. And the bridge will be put into use by the end of 2018.
