全球最长跨海大桥总设计师：港珠澳大桥用钢量=10个鸟巢=60个埃菲尔铁塔|World's longest sea bridge

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The Lingdingyang Channel is a trumpet-shaped estuary on the Pearl River, which covers Guangdong Province's Humen town in the north to Hong Kong and Macau in the south. The area with a 60km radius has 14 cities and seven airports. It is one of the most important international waterways in China.

伶仃洋位于广东珠海口外，是一个喇叭形的河口湾。它北起东莞虎门，南达香港、澳门，半径60公里内有14个大城市，7个机场，也是中国最重要的大型国际航道之一。

To further connect the major cities around the Lingdingyang Channel and develop commercial activities between Hong Kong, Macau and the mainland, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge was developed, with construction beginning in December 2009.

为了进一步联结伶仃洋周边的大城市，为内地和港澳的商贸往来提供便利，2009年12月，港珠澳大桥的建设开始了。

It's a huge project that is expected to cost more than 120 billion yuan. The whole bridge measures about 50 km, including an undersea tunnel of 6.7 km and four artificial islands. The Y-shaped bridge connects Zhuhai with Hong Kong and Macau.

这是一项浩大的工程，投资超过1200亿人民币。大桥全长接近50公里，包括一条长约6.7公里的海底隧道和四个人工岛，呈Y字形联结珠海、香港、澳门三地。

Meng Fanchao joined the engineering team in 2004 and is the chief designer of the main section of the bridge.

孟凡超是港珠澳大桥主体工程的总设计师，于2004年加入了港珠澳大桥的建设团队。

Meng took part in the College Entrance Examination in 1978, becoming one of the first college students during China's reform and opening-up period. His parents were both teachers and were strict with their children: "My parents always told us to behave well at the dinner table, to have good manner, and to live with honesty and integrity. Those are still fresh in my memory."

孟凡超1978年参加高考，是改革开放后高等教育改革的第一批受益者。他的父母都是教师，对孩子教育严格：“我记得那个时候，父母要求我们这些孩子，在饭桌上要守规矩，在家里也要站有站相、坐有坐相。对人要诚恳、老实，不能骗人，这些还是记忆犹新。”

After graduating from the Department of Bridge and Tunnel Engineering of Chongqing Jiaotong University, he took part in many projects including the Shayang Hanjiang River Bridge and Bridge No. 5 of Mosul in Iraq, witnessing the progress and innovations in China's bridge construction technologies along the way.

从重庆交通大学的桥梁与隧道专业毕业后，他分别参与了沙洋汉江公路大桥、伊拉克莫索尔5号桥等的设计建设工作，见证了中国桥梁建设水平的进步与创新。

The construction of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge is extremely complicated. It involves the co-coordinating three separate areas, as well as factoring in resistance to floods, strong winds and other environmental dangers.

港珠澳大桥的建设工程十分复杂，既涉及三地的管理协调问题，也涉及到具体的抗洪、抗风、环保问题。

At first, Meng and most of the specialists favored a plan to construct a whole bridge system, as it'd be both economical and magnificent, yet less risky to engineer. But there were obstacles. First, the construction couldn't interfere with the main channel of the Pearl River Estuary. Second, the height restrictions needed for Hong Kong International Airport had to be taken into consideration. Third, the habitat of Chinese white dolphins could not be disturbed. These factors meant the bridge had to be significantly altered in order to meet those conditions.

最开始，孟凡超和众多专家倾向于按照全桥方案进行建设，因为这样比较经济，同时更加宏伟、美观，而且工程风险更小。但计划遭遇了现实阻碍：第一，桥梁的施工不能影响珠江口主航道的正常运作；第二，要顾及香港国际机场的航空限高；第三，要注重中华白海豚栖息地的保护。这么一来，桥梁可能得绕行十几公里，高度也不能满足力学要求。

After several discussions, Meng and his colleagues decided on building a bridge-tunnel system, turning part of the bridge into an undersea tunnel. "As an expert of bridge construction, I had to give up the bridge-tunnel plan very reluctantly. I have to be practical and realistic."

最终，经过商讨，孟凡超和同事们决定启用桥隧结合的方案，将一部分桥改成海底隧道： “作为一个搞桥梁的来说，我也是忍痛放弃的全桥方案，最终推荐这个桥隧组合方案，还是做到实事求是吧。”

Aside from using rational designs and state-of-the-art technologies, Meng wanted to infuse the bridge with unique aesthetics and cultural elements. This is demonstrated in the decoration of the towers: "We adopted Chinese knots to symbolize the solidarity of the three areas, that we are taking joint efforts to build the bridge and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area together."

在合理的设计和过硬的技术之外，孟凡超觉得，还应该让港珠澳大桥有一些新的特征，尤其是在设计的美观性、文化性方面，可以有所提升。这一理念最终体现在桥塔的装饰上：“我们用中国结，结同心，结同缘来寓意三地通力协作建设港珠澳大桥，通力打造粤港澳大湾区。”

The construction of the main bridge section was completed in February 2018. "Six years of planning and design, eight years of construction. 14 years is way too long for a bridge engineer." said Meng. In his prime when the project began, he is now approaching retirement and has graying hair. A middle school boy when it started, his son is now in his 30s. "You can say that me and my family made progress alongside the project."

2018年2月，港珠澳大桥主体工程完成交工验收。“规划研究六年，加上八年的实施建设期，这十四年对一个桥梁工程师来讲，是非常漫长的。”孟凡超说。在此期间，他从一个年富力强的工程师，到临近退休，两鬓斑白；当年上初中的儿子，如今也已年近三十。“应该说，我的个人和家庭都伴随着港珠澳大桥的设计建设在变化。”

Meng's Wife, Ouyang Hua'an is also a senior engineer. She is in charge of most of the family's responsibilities as Meng is out on the construction site for almost nine months per year. According to Ouyang, Meng is quite clumsy at home: "He doesn't know how to use the new washing machine. He called me to say the stove was broken, when the battery had just ran out. You can't really blame him, can you?"

孟凡超的妻子欧阳华安也是高级工程师。但因为他长年累月在外施工，一年有四分之三的时间在出差，妻子一个人承担了大部分家庭责任。在欧阳华安眼中，孟凡超在日常生活中相当笨拙：“原来家里单缸洗衣机他还会用，现在的洗衣机他根本不会用。然后家里煤气打不着了，他就会给我打电话问，其实就是没有电池了……这个时候就让你哭笑不得。”

She fell for Meng years ago because of his persistence and ambition: "He is the type of person that's meant for great things. So part of me complains about doing chores alone, yet the other part feels really proud of him."

但青年时代的孟凡超当初吸引她的，就是那份对未来的执着和憧憬：“他就是那种要做大事业的人。所以我一方面觉得一个人照顾家很艰辛，但一方面也觉得很荣幸，很安慰。”

The bridge is expected to shortens the travel time between the east and west banks of the Pearl River Estuary from five hours to less than 60 minutes. The "Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau one-hour living circle" will become reality.

从前，在珠江口东西两岸往来，需要大约五小时，港珠澳大桥正式通车后，“粤港澳一小时生活圈”将成为现实。

"A bridge is a structure that changes people's concept of time and space. It connects people with the world." Meng hopes that his family can drive through the bridge together in the near future: "It represents and fulfills my value as one of the bridge's builders.”

“桥梁是改变我们生活时空观的一种工程结构，它可以拉近人们和世界的距离。”孟凡超最大的愿望是，一家人有朝一日可以自驾通过港珠澳大桥：“这是自己作为一个大桥建设者人生观的释放和体现。”

Cameraman: Yue Xiaoliang

Film editor: Kong Zhiliang, Ma Mingyuan

Story written by: Zhu Siqi 

English editor: Josh McNally 

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