The construction of Russia’s first international cableway across the Amur River between Blagoveschensk in Russia and Heihe in China got started as the first pillar was driven into the ground on April 6.
The pillar 880 mm in diameter was driven 32 meters underground on the site that will accommodate the ropeway terminal. All in all, 152 such pillars will be used utilizing 2.5 thousand cubic meters of concrete and 820 tons of metal. The entire project will utilize 15 thousand cubic meters of concrete and 6.6 thousand tons of metal.
The general contractor under the project designed by UNStudio (Netherlands) is China’s CRCC that built the world’s first high-speed railway between Harbin and Dalian, the Hong Kong – Zhuhai – Makao bridge, and a metro station in Moscow.
The cableway is scheduled to be put into operation in 2023. The four-level passenger terminal on the Russian side of the ropeway with a capacity of 2.5 mn people per annum will accommodate the cable car station, the border crossing checkpoint, restaurants, cafes, and duty free shops.
The 976 meter long cableway will consist of two parallel sections operating in a pendulum mode with gondolas for 110 passengers. The interval between trips will make some 12-15 minutes, so 457 people will be able to travel across the Amur during an hour. During the first year of operation, a million passengers are expected to use the cableway.