Chinese workers began building the first pier on Sunday of a massive bridge that will span across the Minjiang River in east China's Fujian Province.

The two-way railway bridge, with a length of 7,637.32 meters, is a key part of Xiangtang-Putian Railway.

This is an artist's rendition of the bridge that will be built across the Minjiang River in east China's Fujian Province. Workers began building the first pier of the two-way railway bridge on Sunday, March 1, 2009. The bridge will be a key part of the Xiangtang-Putian Railway that runs from Jiangxi Province to Fujian Province. [Photo: hdzxw.com]

The project is designed to bring Jiangxi, an old revolutionary inland province, closer to east China's seaboard, according to Xiangtang-Putian Railway Co. Ltd.

The bridge will connect a tunnel exit with Daode Mountain in Minhou near Fuzhou, the provincial capital of Fujian, and the Fuzhou Railway Station.

It will span over the Beijing-Fuzhou Freeway, 316 National Highway, Minjiang River and a local flood control embankment.

The bridge will cost 590 million yuan (about 86.77 million US dollars) and will take 30 months to complete because of its complexity, said an engineer with China's Zhongtie Major Bridge Engineering Group Co. Ltd..

The Xiangtang-Putian railway will start in Xiangtang in Nanchang, capital of east China's Jiangxi Province, extend southeast and zigzag among mountains. It will then branch to Fuzhou and Putian via Yongtai, Fujian Province.

With a budget of 51.8 billion yuan (about 7.62 billion US dollars), the railway project spans 603.6 kilometers. More than half that distance is inside Fujian.

Construction started on Xiangtang-Putian railway in November 2008. The entire railway project is expected to be finished and put into service in 2012.

(Xinhua News Agency March 2, 2009)