Left Half of the 286-Meter-Span B3 Arch Bridge in Georgia, Built by CRCC, Closes

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 20, the B3 arch bridge in Section 2 of the Georgia North-South Corridor Highway Project, constructed by China Railway 23rd Bureau Group under China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC), completed the pouring of the last concrete segment of the main arch ring for the left half, achieving closure of the left half of the arch ring. The bridge is located in the Khada Gorge in the Caucasus Mountains, with a total length of 437.875 meters, a main arch net span of 286 meters, and a deck 164 meters above the valley floor. It is a long-span cast-in-place concrete arch bridge project in the Caucasus region, with full-width closure of the main arch ring planned for the end of 2026.

The B3 arch bridge adopts a deck-type reinforced concrete arch bridge structure. The main arch consists of two independent box-shaped arch ribs and is constructed using a cable-stayed buckling system and cantilever casting with form travelers. The arch ring section is 3.5 meters wide and 4.7 meters high, which is relatively small among long-span arch bridges of the same type. The construction area is located in a high-mountain gorge, affected year-round by strong winds, with winter temperatures dropping to as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius and snow accumulation reaching up to 2 meters.

In response to the strong winds in the mountainous area and the conditions of long-span cantilever construction, the project team, together with domestic universities, carried out full-life-cycle wind tunnel tests and on-site wind resistance verification, and established a wind resistance monitoring and safety assurance system covering both the construction and operation stages. During construction, arch ring alignment monitoring, cantilever casting control with form travelers, and concrete quality management were carried out simultaneously. After the completion of the left half closure, the project will continue with the construction of the other half of the arch ring and the subsequent bridge structure.

The B3 arch bridge is a key controlling bridge of the Georgia North-South Corridor Highway Project. The road section where it is located crosses the Caucasus Mountains and serves as the highway connection spanning the Khada Gorge. The project adopts European design standards. Once completed, the bridge will become one of the reinforced concrete arch bridges with the largest main arch span in the Caucasus region and will be integrated into Georgia's north-south highway transportation network.