China opens world’s longest sea-crossing bridge

China has officially opened the world’s longest sea-crossing bridge, which connects the Chinese city of Zhuhai to the semi-autonomous regions of Hong Kong and Macau. It includes an undersea tunnel allowing ships to pass through the Pearl River delta, the heart of China’s manufacturing sector. The 34-mile-long bridge forms a physical link between the mainland and Hong Kong, an Asian financial hub that was handed over from British to Chinese control in 1997 with the assurance it would maintain its own legal and economic system for 50 years. The bridge is part of China’s plan to create a Greater Bay Area, including Hong Kong, Macau and nine other cities in southern China. The area is currently home to 68 million people. In the past, travelling between Zhuhai and Hong Kong would take up to four hours – the new bridge cuts this down to 30 minutes. It costs about $20bn and build in almost a decade.