Thanlyin：A Bridge to Tomorrow

Wang Fengjuan

In upgrading our infrastructure， Myanmar couldnt have hoped for more advanced technologies than what were getting because China is already the worlds leader in technologies related to building bridges and roads，” declared U Thein Aung， chief engineer at the Department of Bridge under the Ministry of Construction （MOC） of Myanmar who teamed up with Chinese builders on the Thanlyin Bridge.

Thanlyin Bridge， 15 kilometers southeast of Yangon， serves as an important logistics conduit to enter Yangon from south of the city. For the past 30 years， it has provided comfortable and convenient passage over the Pegu River thanks to eight years of painstaking construction work by engineers from both China and Myanmar.

Following the Thanlyin Bridge， the new Kunlong Bridge Project was approved by Myanmar authorities in early March. The pair of bridges will span different rivers on both sides of the city， not only making Myanmar life more convenient， but also testifying to the progress that China has made in terms of bridge building technologies since the country adopted the reform and opening-up policy in 1978.

“The southern part of the bridge leads to the Thilawa Special Economic Zone and Yangon deep-sea port， so it carries heavy traffic flows back and forth from both sides of Pegu River，” reported Myanmar driver Khaing Htoo. Now， it is hard to imagine how local life would look without the bridge.

Bridge of Friendship

The 3-kilometer Thanlyin Bridge， the largest double-decker railroad bridge in Myanmar， broke ground in October 1986 and was completed in July 1993. The bridge was not only the largest economic and technological cooperation project of the 1980s involving China and Myanmar， but also the largest overseas aid project sponsored by China at the time.

Thanlyin Bridge represents a milestone of China-Myanmar friendship as well as the bond of friendship sowed by engineers from the two countries. Chinese engineers not only began to train their Myanmar colleagues as early as 1984， two years ahead of the planned start of construction， but also worked with the Myanmar engineering staff in-person at the construction site. A group of Myanmar bridge technicians were thus cultivated， and engineers from the two countries forged a close “paukphaw” （brotherly friendship） .

Chief Engineer U Tin Soe once held the post of Myanmar project director for construction of Thanlyin Bridge. He still acts as an adviser to the MOC in Myanmar even after his retirement. U Tin Soe was emotional when discussing the process of building the bridge： “In those days， the technical conditions were limited， but we worked with Chinese engineers to overcome every obstacle. It took eight long years to build this landmark bridge.”

Construction of the bridge indeed experienced twists and turns. On August 13， 1988， the political situation in Myanmar became unstable， and the project was suspended for 21 months. U Thant Zin， then Myanmar project director of Thanlyin Bridge， recalled： “Before they left， Chinese engineers reminded us to continue to pour concrete and ensure maintenance of the construction equipment and materials.”

Another roadblock emerged on July 17， 1991 while the joint construction team was using silt suction and sinking method to sink an open caisson as part of preparatory work to install the No. 2 pier. Due to geological reasons， the open caisson suddenly tilted.

Previously， when a construction team from another country tried to repair a bridge in Myanmar， a similar tilting open caisson accident occurred and the entire project had to be scrapped.

So whether Chinese experts could solve the problem remained a doubt in the minds of the Myanmar residents. The next day， the Myanmar government sent a helicopter to view the construction site. Chinese experts carefully analyzed the slope of the sinking well and the geological conditions of the riverbed. After pinpointing the cause， they worked with Myanmar engineers to take corrective measures. After a week of round-the-clock work， the inclined open caisson was successfully corrected.

Engineers from China and Myanmar have established mutual trust through close cooperation in the face of various crises and tests， and they have formed an unbreakable friendship. The memories have remained fresh for many years for U Thant Zin. “Many people believe that experiencing hardships and difficulties together makes people unite like brothers，” he remarked.

Li Jiaoxing， now a retired engineer from Wuhan， Hubei Province， still has special feelings for the bridge. “Thanlyin Bridge is longer than Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge and Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge， both of which symbolized important milestones of Chinese bridge construction in modern times，” he noted. “Although difficulties were encountered and unexpected problems arose during the construction process， joint efforts and cooperation from both sides propelled the project to finally be completed in March 1993.”

A Personal Story

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the job for Li Xinghua. As a witness of evolution of Chinas bridge building technology， Li Xinghua admits it has benefited from reform and opening-up.

Li grew up in a mountain village in Enshi， southwestern Hubei Province. He enthusiastically chose a railway-related major at college because rails didnt reach his hometown back then. However， Li was assigned to work at the bridge bureau upon graduation. Since then， he has remained devoted to bridge-related work.

“In 1993， I went to work on the Yangon-Thanlyin Bridge in Myanmar，” Li illustrated. “Now overseas bridge building happens through bidding， and this competition model has promoted the development of bridge building. Market competition has pushed bridge builders to conduct more intense technological research and development. Reform and opening-up has created opportunities for exchange with the outside world. In the process of mutual exchange and learning， Chinas bridge building technology has begun to develop rapidly to a world-class level.”

In the late 1980s and early 1990s， Chinas bridge building technology was still nascent. Design theory and calculation methods at the time were still relatively backward. Designing a bridge required numerous simulation experiments to explore methods. From 1998 to 2004， Li Xinghua led a team to Guizhou Province， where they participated in the construction of Beipanjiang Bridge， Qingshuihe Bridge and Lizigou Bridge.

Alongside reform and opening-up， the rapid development of Chinas bridge industry is inextricably tied to the hard work of every bridge builder. Speaking of the working environment decades ago， Li Xinghua frankly recalled： “There was no access to clean water， electricity or telephones in the mountain area. It took us hours to walk to the construction site. Due to the complex landscape and inconvenient transportation， supplies never arrived at the worksite on time. So we often had to tighten our belts.” Li and the construction team overcame difficulties and natural barriers in such a harsh environment to complete one bridge after another， bringing convenient transportation to local residents.

To Build More Bridges

“I witnessed Chinas advanced bridge building technology in Guizhou Province and Wuhan， where I realized bridges could be built in mountainous areas and across rivers to transform natural barriers into smooth roads—a skill well worth learning，” said U Tint Swe， former deputy union minister of construction. From May 26 to June 3， a total of 25 people including U Tint Swe， government officials from MOC and retired Myanmar engineers from MOC involved in the construction of the Yangon-Thanlyin Bridge visited Guizhou， Wuhan， Beijing and Yunnan.

On a visit to see the expressway from southwestern Chinese city of Ruili to the eastern city of Hangzhou， U Tint Swe and the delegation experienced Chinas mature technology of building expressway in the mountain area， and were particularly impressed by Beipanjiang Bridge and Qingshuihe Bridge in Guizhou. U Tint Swe exclaimed to China Report ASEAN how fortunate they were to see so many bridge masterpieces in person such as Beipanjiang Bridge spanning the Beipanjiang Grand Canyon， which is a suspension bridge that holds the title of the Worlds Highest Bridge.

“The mountainous area of Myanmar has a similar landscape to Guizhou， so we can learn from Chinas advanced technologies to construct modern bridges for Myanmar people，” U Tint Swe said.

Today， engineers from China and Myanmar are actively expanding cooperation in road construction and maintenance. China Road and Bridge Corporation （CRBC） and the MOC of Myanmar have promoted a number of infrastructure projects involving connectivity between the two countries as well as the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor under the Belt and Road， which has facilitated projects such as the Mandalay-Muse expressway， upgrade of the Yangon-Mandalay expressway and upgrade of the Mandalay-Myitkyina road. All of these projects are progressing steadily.

U Aung Myat Oo， deputy director general of Department of Bridge under the MOC of Myanmar， oversees bridge maintenance. When he witnessed Chinas third-generation intelligent detection robot checking for damage on a bridges cables， he beamed， “I want to buy this robot and take it back to Myanmar.” Because Myanmar is so moist and rainy， rust on bridges is common. China， with regions of similar climate and cutting-edge technology， has already learned to adapt.

“In my experience， Chinese people have a spirit to try new things and fight through harsh working conditions，” revealed U Aung Myat Oo. “As long as they see hope， they go for it. I hope to gain more advanced experience from China.”

He added， “When meeting with Myanmars State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi， Chinese President Xi Jinping said that China is willing to strengthen cooperation with Myanmar under the Belt and Road Initiative to achieve common development. I personally expect the Belt and Road to advance Myanmars infrastructure， which will bring more tangible benefits to Myanmar people.”

“We must inherit the spirit of friendly cooperation embodied by the Thanlyin Bridge and jointly promote the cause of China-Myanmar friendship，” proclaimed Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Hong Liang.