Engineering Connections

When it comes to mammoth engineering projects, China has once again shown nothing is a bridge too far with the opining of the Jiaozhou road bridge, at an astonishing 24 miles; this 3 way sea crossing between the eastern cities of Haung Dao,  Quingdao and Quingdao Airport is the longest water crossing in the world.

The Jiazhou Road Bridge (Google Earth)

The bridge cost more than 10 billion yaun (nearly £1 billion) in a build lasting 4 years. I post this in the same week the debate over a new high speed rail line in the UK intensified with campaign groups in the North of England revealing the slogan 'Their lawns for our jobs' in reference to the unsettling NIMBY culture in the South of the country which threatens to delay the project beyond its projected 2033 opening. By then I suspect the Chinese will be commuting to the Moon.


To rub greater salt into our increasing wounds, China this week also opened a Shanghai to Beijing High speed link, at 820 miles the scheme also took just 4 years to build and will cut journey times to around 4 hours and 48 minutes, with questions now being asked whether the Chinese could build our own High Speed line 2, a unthinkable proposition just 20 years ago but a deep indication of a changing global environment and one the UK increasingly risks being left back at the station. 


China is currently investing in what will eventually become the worlds largest high speed rail network with 10.500 miles of track now completed or under construction. The Beijing to Shanghai line cost £24.5 billion and the Chinese government is investing £19 billion in high speed rail this year alone. Current estimates for the planned British line currently suggest a cost of £32 billion . 


The UK has a rich engineering heritage that is increasingly compromised by a long winded and complicated planning system as well as an uncomfortable inability to manage costs. The decision by the current coalition government to scrap the IPC (1) doesn't help in this regard, nor does the lack of a national planning framework for England which could help promote greater long term and integrated thinking and perhaps prevent the North / South arguments we are seeing. 




1, This article from the Daily Mail, ( the most popular news website in the UK and the 2nd best selling daily) perhaps highlights more than ever the attitude that exists amongst households towards development, a notable quote from the article ''They (Ministers) made clear that local people who do not want expensive infrastructure projects blighting there communities will have greater power to object''


Perhaps there lies the problem