On March 20, 2026, as the bridge erecting machine steadily erected the 223rd railway T-beam, which is 32.6 meters long and weighs 134.25 tons, to the position of the newly-built Jiatong Railway Tongjiang Extra Large Bridge (piers 157-158), it marked the beginning of the "15th Five Year Plan" construction season in the northernmost province of China, and the first key railway project officially pressed the "start button".

It is reported that due to the rapid recovery of weather this year, all parties have scientifically coordinated, planned in advance, and organized in an orderly manner to promote the comprehensive resumption of work and production of projects. Compared to the same period in 2025, the resumption of work this year has been advanced by 10 days. The expansion and renovation project of the Jiatong Railway on the "East Passage" of the China Europe freight train has been accelerated, which has bought valuable time for the efficient promotion of subsequent projects.

The Jiatong Railway Capacity Expansion and Renovation Project starts from Dongjiamusi Station in Jiamusi City and ends at Tongjiangbei Station. It is a mainline railway mainly for freight transportation and also for passenger transportation. The total length of the renovated line is 258.25 kilometers, and it is an important component of the "East Passage" of China Europe freight trains. The Tongjiang Extra Large Bridge, which resumed construction ahead of schedule, is located in the reconstruction section from Tongjiang to Tongjiang North. It is the "number one control project" of the entire line, with a total length of 10435.14 meters. The bridge adopts a single track T-beam structure design and is currently the longest newly-built bridge in the western, central, and eastern sections of China's China Europe Railway Express. The bridge was designed by China Railway Fifth Survey and Design Institute (CRCFIV) and constructed by China Railway 23rd Bureau. In order to save valuable black soil resources in the Sanjiang Plain, an important commodity grain base in China, a design scheme of "surrounding the city and replacing the road with a bridge" was determined. The proportion of this section of the bridge is as high as 84%, and a total of 650 railway T-beams need to be erected. The beam erection construction work will begin in September 2025.

Due to the location of the project in the cold northeast region with a short effective construction period and heavy engineering tasks, the Harbin Bureau Group Jiatong Railway Capacity Expansion and Renovation Project Construction Command, responsible for project management, organized participating units to optimize the construction plan in advance, established a working group to conduct a comprehensive inspection of the construction site, strengthened construction safety control, and provided safety training to participating personnel to ensure safe and orderly construction.

As of now, the bridge has completed the installation of 222 T-beams. With the 223rd T-beam starting to be installed, the remaining 427 beams are steadily progressing according to plan. All participating personnel will seize the golden period of construction and strive to achieve the goal of full line installation by August this year.

From winter construction to spring plowing, from the first beam being installed to now more than half of the beam being erected, every crossing of the Tongjiang Grand Bridge witnesses the continuous improvement of the capacity of the China Europe freight train corridor. When the long dragon runs through this autumn, this steel silk road will leap up on the land of northern Xinjiang, carrying Chinese manufacturing and opportunities towards a broader world.

When Tongjiang Super Bridge is completed and put into operation, it will comprehensively improve the capacity of the rear channel of Tongjiang Port, one of the "East Passages" of the China Europe Train, and the train passing capacity of the line will be more than three times higher. The foreign trade transport capacity of coal, iron ore and other bulk commodities at the port will be continuously improved. At the same time, the travel conditions of residents along the line will be improved, providing a safer, convenient and efficient transport channel for the areas along the line, and injecting new momentum into the high-quality co construction of the "the Belt and Road" and building a new highland for China's opening up to the north.Editor/Yang Meiling