The Interim Governor of the Amur Region, Vasily Orlov, believes that the region needs a railway bridge to China as an addition to the Blagoveshchensk-Heihe automobile bridge under construction across the Amur River, along which the Russian-Chinese state border runs.
According to Orlov, the question of the railway bridge construction in the Amur River basin will be discussed at the Eastern Economic Forum (WEF). The event is scheduled to be held on September 11-13, at the campus of the Far Eastern Federal University located on Russky Island.
As a reference, construction of the Blagoveshchensk-Heihe Bridge started on December 24, 2016, in the Blagoveschensky district of the Amur region, Russia. The bridge will be 19.9 kilometers long, cable-stayed with a two-lane road. Russia invests 14 billion rubles in the construction, while the Chinese side invests 5.2 billion rubles. The Russian part of the bridge (13.4 kilometers) will be built by a contractor from Russia, another 6.5 kilometers will pass through China.
“The bridge is being built according to the schedule, in spite of the flood, that is, it will be put into operation in 2020. In my opinion, it's time to discuss the topic of building a railway bridge, this topic should not be discussed broadly but rather with people who are able to make decisions: The Russian Railways, Chinese side, Ministry of Transport. The railway bridge in terms of capacity has a fundamentally different economic effect,” Orlov told reporters.
