The US$260 million-dollar Bharrat Jagdeo Demerara River Bridge, which was commissioned on Sunday, symbolises the commitment of Guyana and China to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China’s Ambassador to Guyana Yang Yang said, while the Guyana government touted the benefits and safety of the new transport infrastructure project.
“Undoubtedly, this project is not only a bridge of steel and stone, but also a bridge of friendship between China and Guyana—a milestone in the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation we are building together,” she told thousands of persons who attended the commissioning ceremony at the eastern end of the new thoroughfare that would link east and west Demerara. The Chinese envoy said within the framework of the BRI, Guyana and China’s “shared goal is to realise the people’s aspirations for common development and a better life.” Ambassador Yang Yang said that is the responsibility embraced by Chinese enterprises, and it is also the calling of China as a responsible major country. The bridge was built by China Railway Construction Corporation Limited, and it is projected to last 100 years.
Launched in 2013, the BRI is a centerpiece of China’s foreign policy that envisages massive, sophisticated infrastructure and other forms of connectivity.
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill added that every stage of construction adhered to international best practices. The design was executed in compliance with AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials) specifications, materials were tested in accordance with ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) standards, and all processes were monitored under ISO (International Standards Organisation)-certified benchmarks.
Mr Edghill used the opportunity of the commissioning ceremony to reiterate that the total of 2,798 meters (1.7 miles) structure is safe as beneath the surface lies an extraordinary foundation of 658 piles driven deep into the riverbed. He told the commissioning ceremony that the main towers, each anchored by approximately 76 enormous piles, measure nearly 8 feet in diameter and are driven 400 feet deep, making them among the strongest structural foundations ever constructed in Guyana’s history. “The New Demerara River Bridge is a modern, four-lane, high-span, cable-stayed structure designed to accommodate both vehicular and pedestrian traffic with the highest standards of safety and efficiency,” he also said.
Mr Edghill also said the bridge deck is suspended by 136 high-tension cable stays, while the approach sections required 472 precast concrete girders, assembled with precision and strength. He restated that the bridge’s 50-meter fixed high-span eliminates the need for bridge openings for vessel traffic, facilitating continuous vehicular flow and ensuring navigational clearance for vessels up to the Handymax class Construction of the new Demerara River Bridge began on December 22, 2022, and at its peak more than 1,300 workers, engineers, craftsmen, and administrators joined hands to build the structure.
Today, on behalf of a grateful people, I’m pleased to dedicate this bridge in the name of Bharrat Jagdeo. From this day forward, it shall be called the Bharrat Jagdeo Demerara River Bridge, because great men deserve recognition, because visionaries deserve legacies,” President Irfaan Ali declared.
President Ali justified his decision to name the new east-west river corridor after Mr Jagdeo who ascended to the presidency in 1999 when then-President Janet Jagan stepped down for health reasons. The former finance minister then went on to be elected twice. “I want to recognise a man that has dedicated his life to the equipment of this country, a man who has been an advisor, an architect and an anchor in our development today, I want to pay tribute to a giant of our local politics and economy,” Dr Ali said of Mr Jagdeo.
He said it was fitting that the bridge was being commissioned on October 5, the same date 33 years ago when his People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) “shattered the shackles of authoritarian rule.” The 1992 general and regional elections had been certified as the first free and fair elections in almost 30 years.
After the ribbon-cutting, President Ali, Prime Minister Mark Phillips and several government ministers led attendees on an estimated 30-minute walk across the bridge.