Journeymarvel.com – Like a marvel of wonder spanning across valleys. It’s a place where fantasy and reality merge in an indescribable beauty. Something perhaps never imagined before but successfully realized. And this is the captivating charm of China with its 2,000 breathtaking glass bridges.
China, a land rich in history and culture, is also known for its impressive technological and architectural achievements. One extraordinary feat that has captured the world’s attention is the thousands of glass bridges scattered across the country. These glass bridges are not just ordinary infrastructure; they are architectural masterpieces that combine advanced technology and boundless creativity.
Apart from being visually stunning, China’s glass bridges excel in capacity as well. The Bamboo Curtain Country has managed to build thousands of glass bridges, with some of them even ranking among the longest glass bridges in the world, stretching hundreds of meters. Remarkably, despite being made of glass, these bridges can bear heavy loads on them. Even heavy vehicles can traverse these glass bridges in China.
China can be considered a pioneer in glass bridge construction. The concept of glass bridges gained popularity in China in the early 2010s, with several efforts to combine innovative glass technology with stunning natural landscapes. China continues to innovate, and in 2016, they successfully built the sensational Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon Glass Bridge in Hunan province. This glass bridge was designed as a unique experience, allowing visitors to walk on glass while enjoying the breathtaking views of the deep gorge below. The success of this bridge paved the way for similar projects across China. In recent years, glass bridge projects across China have rapidly developed and become a major attraction in the country’s tourism industry.
Glass bridges are not just about providing extreme experiences for visitors but also about promoting tourism and boosting local development. Stakeholders recognize the significant economic potential of making glass bridges tourist attractions.
We may find glass bridges in other countries, but China holds the record for both quantity and size. Currently, China is the country with the most glass bridges in the world. They have approximately 2,300 glass bridges of various sizes and designs. The Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge is one of China’s most popular glass bridges, with construction costs exceeding 1 trillion rupiah. This glass bridge has a length of 430 meters, equivalent to the length of 4 football fields. It is 6 meters wide and hangs over a valley with a height of about 300 meters. With such height, it’s guaranteed that anyone stepping on this transparent glass bridge will feel a shiver.
Despite being quite terrifying, visitors need not worry, as the construction of these glass bridges is ensured to be sturdy and very safe for human passage. Before construction, the bridge structure and panels must undergo rigorous testing. They even underwent wind tests for 6 months in the wind tunnel laboratory at Hunan University in Changsha. The glass sections also underwent heavy load and deflection tests up to 40 tons. Deflection refers to the change in shape of a material structure due to the pressure of a load. Extensive studies and testing of various techniques were also conducted to determine aerodynamic elasticity, gravitational forces, vibrations, structural dynamics, and pedestrian effects. As a result of these tests, special measures were designed to ensure that the structural design meets wind resistance, safety, and pedestrian vibration requirements using various shock absorption technologies, combined with damping and anti-vibration mechanisms.
To construct these glass bridges, Chinese engineers installed four main pillars on the edge of the valley walls, then erected steel frames and 120 glass panels. The glass used is a type of tempered glass known for its strength. Furthermore, the glass is layered up to 3 layers thick. So sturdy is this glass that it does not shatter even when struck repeatedly by a large hammer. Moreover, on its opening day, the Zhangjiajie Glass Bridge was passed by a 2-ton truck and was declared safe. Now, this bridge can accommodate up to 800 people simultaneously.
Additionally, there is the breathtaking Qingchuan Glass Bridge. This glass bridge spans the steep cliffs of the Huangchuan Three Gorges, facing the largest waterfall cluster in northern Guangdong. The skywalk is 8.8 meters wide and the bridge itself stands at a height of 201 meters, making it the longest glass suspension bridge in China with a length of 526.14 meters.
The entire bridge is covered with three layers of ultra-white tempered laminated glass, 4.5 cm thick, with a light transmission rate of 99.15%, providing a crystal-clear, very bright deck and a very high light refraction index. With stainless steel arc-shaped vertical railing on both sides of the bridge and striking Chinese red main towers and cables, this glass bridge perfectly combines modern structure with classic Chinese style.
Ruyi Glass Bridge is also equally mesmerizing. This glass bridge is a pedestrian crossing bridge in Taizhou, Zhejiang, China, consisting of three bridges. It is built to cross the Shenxianju Valley and features a glass-floored walkway. The unusual curved walkway is designed to resemble a Chinese ruyi. It is 100 meters long and stands above a 140-meter-high gorge.
The Tianmen Glass Corridor, also known as the Huangtengxia Glass Hanging Corridor, is located in the Huangtengxia Scenic Area. Its appearance resembles a pair of rockets crisscrossing over the mountain, pointing directly to the sky. The total length of the Tianmen hanging corridor is about 368 meters in a straight line extending from the mountain body. While the vertical height is over 500 meters from the ground surface.
The most fascinating part of this glass bridge is the ring-shaped waterfall section with a total circumference of 168 meters. And when night falls, more than 2,000 ring-shaped waterfall lights are turned on, providing a very enchanting visual delight for tourists.
In summary, the thousands of glass bridges in China are evidence of how extraordinary this Bamboo Curtain Country is. Built with precision, these bridges are architectural masterpieces that are truly hypnotic. They reflect technological prowess, showing that China is now a step ahead among many countries in the world. China’s glass bridges are a symbol of hard work and perseverance, proving that humans can overcome obstacles and achieve things previously unimaginable. They seem to convey a message that no wall is too high and no distance too far if we have dreams. Clearly, nothing is impossible if we have strong determination.