The longest cross-sea bridge in the world---Hangzhou Bay Trans-oceanic Bridge was formally opened to traffic on 1st, May. Linked by the bridge, Ningbo and Shanghai, two modern coastal cities, began to be joined closely. New patterns of competition & cooperation will be formed between the two cities, and the economical structure of Yangtze River Delta Region will also undergo profound changes.
The bridge is a six-lane highway bridge with an overall length of 36 Km, and its designated speed is 100 kilometers per hour. Its northern end is in Haiyian, Jiaxing city and its southern end is in Cixi, Ningbo city. As one of the main traffic facilities, the bridge was designed, invested, built and managed by Chinese people.
Ningbo is the chief beneficiary of the bridge. The bridge links the south of Shanghai and the north of Ningbo, changes the route from Ningbo to Shanghai or south Jiangsu---no need to make a detour via Hangzhou like before. The distance between Shanghai and Ningbo has been shortened by 120 km and the driving time has been cut down from 4 hours to about 2 hours. The distance from Wenzhou & Taizhou to Shanghai also has been shortened by 150 km and the driving time has been reduced from 6 hours to 4 hours. The bridge changes Ningbo's traffic position fundamentally and makes Ningbo become the hub to link Shanghai, south Jiangsu and Wenzhou, Taizhou, Zhoushan, and even the southern part of Fujian, it also makes Ningbo become an important hinge in the nation's land communication network.
Separated by stretches of sea, Ningbo port and Zhoushan port now are linked with Luchao port of Shanghai by the bridge, and also connected with Daxiaoyangshan port by Shanghai Donghai Bridge, thus a T-shape golden coast for river-sea combined transportation has been formed. It's said that the port group: Zhoushan port-Ningbo port-Hangzhou Bay Bridge-Luchao port-Donghai Bridge-Daxiaoyangshan port has became the biggest port group in China and even in the world, and Hangzhou Bay Bridge is the key link of the two coasts.
The mayor of Ningbo Mao Guanglie said: To some extent, the relationship between Ningbo and Shanghai is just like the relationship between Shenzhen and Hongkong. Hangzhou Bay Bridge has put an end to the structure of Administrative District Economy and indicated the coming of Economic Area Economy. Ningbo, joined with Shanghai, will become the gateway of Asia-Pacific area, and Ningbo port will become one of the international hub ports for containers.
As Rockwood's branch in Ningbo, we have been brought more opportunities by the bridge. Taking consideration of Ningbo's advantage as the economic center of the Southern part of Yangze River Region, the international liner companies are bound to reevaluate Ningbo's city position and adjust their strategies and operational proportion. With the change of the communication pattern, we can attract the cargo from the north bank of Hangzhou Bay. Besides, we will also try to get the cargoes from Jiaxing, Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou, Huzhou and other nearby cities whose cargoes are mainly shipped out via Yangshan port.
However, we recognize clearly that the bridge will be a double-edged sword. After its opening, the export enterprises in the cities and areas near Hangzhou Bay will have more choices about the transportation routes & international shipping lines. Ningbo will meet Shanghai's challenge about keeping cargoes from Cixi, Shaoxing, Wenzhou, Taizhou.
Facing the challenges and opportunities, we will have win-win cooperation with Rockwood Shanghai. To serve our customers better, we will complement one another, divide our work and cooperate with each other rationally, and share our resources and information with each other. Rockwood Ningbo will cherish the opportunities and bring our advantages into full play, improve our competitiveness step by step, and expand our influence in the local market. Believe that Rockwood Ningbo will realize its takeoff in the Bridge era!