A transportation hub for the waterway from the Tonghai Port Area to Tongzhou Bay Port Area is under construction in Tongzhou district, Nantong. [Photo/WeChat account: wxtzfb]

A transportation hub for the waterway from the Tonghai Port Area to Tongzhou Bay Port Area is currently under construction in Shuangqiao village, Chuanjiang town, Tongzhou district, Nantong.

This 630-million-yuan ($86.98 million) project commenced construction in March 2024 and is expected to wrap up in October 2026. It encompasses a ship lock, sluice, bridge, and associated supporting facilities.

To date, about 30 percent of primary construction work on the ship lock has been completed. The chamber structure is expected to be completed from late June to early July, followed by excavation work outside the cofferdam.

Meanwhile, the pouring of concrete for the new bridge in Shuangqiao village was finished before the end of last year, meaning the bridge is over 60-percent complete. The bridge is scheduled to open to traffic before National Day in October.

As a vital segment of the Tongyang Canal, the waterway from the Tonghai Port Area to Tongzhou Bay Port Area extends Tongzhou Bay Port's reach to central and southern Jiangsu, as well as to areas along the Yangtze River. The new transportation hub will be developed into a third-level waterway capable of accommodating ships weighing up to 1,000 tons.