The Yangtze River provides a vast natural barrier to communication through China. It flows generally eastwards to Shanghai and into the East China Sea and is over 6,000km long. Major north-south bound roads and railways must cross it. Ferries have provided a service and over the last few decades is has been crossed by vast suspension bridges to improve the country’s infrastructure, increasing the safety and speed of journeys.

The Fourth Nanjing Yangtze Bridge is one of the longest at over 5,400m and a main span of 1,418m. In 2019 it was renamed the Nanjing Qixiashan Yangtze River Bridge. It is a road bridge with dual six-lane carriageways.

Other major bridges over the Yangtze include: Runyang (1490m main span, opened in 2005), Yiangyin (1385m, 1999), Yanglou (1280m, 2007) and Sutong (1088m, 2008).

China’s longest main span bridge at 1,650m is the Xihoumen Bridge across Hangzhou Bay, south of Shanghai.