One of China's busiest expressways, the Humen Bridge—open to traffic for 27 years and once recording a peak single-day traffic volume of nearly 200,000 vehicles—may be "renewed." In early April, Guangdong Humen Bridge Co., Ltd. published the "Tender Announcement for the Feasibility Study of the Reconstruction and Expansion Project of the Humen Bridge Section of the Dongguan-Foshan Expressway" on the official website of the Guangzhou Public Resources Trading Center, indicating that the Humen Bridge, a sea-crossing bridge open to traffic for nearly 30 years, may undergo reconstruction and expansion.

　　The route is approximately 21.5 kilometers in total length.

　　The tender documents reveal that the proposed recommended route for the Humen Bridge reconstruction and expansion project starts at the Taiping Interchange of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway, successively crosses over the Taiping Waterway, Baihuashan Tunnel, Weiyuan Interchange, Humen Fortress Protection Zone, Shiziyang Waterway, and Nansha Interchange, then lands and merges into the existing road, and ends at the Tanwei Interchange of the Guangzhou-Macau Expressway. The route is approximately 21.5 kilometers in total length, proposed to adopt expressway standards, with a design speed of 120 km/h.

　　Although the announcement did not disclose information such as the investment amount or how the existing bridge will be reconstructed and expanded, the reconstruction and expansion project of the Humen Bridge Section of the Dongguan-Foshan Expressway had previously been included in the 2024 Key Construction Preliminary Preparatory Projects of the Guangdong Provincial Development and Reform Commission.

　　The "Guangdong Province 2024 Key Construction Preliminary Preparatory Project Plan" publicly released by the Guangdong Provincial Development and Reform Commission shows that the reconstruction and expansion project of the Humen Bridge Section of the Dongguan-Foshan Expressway has a total investment of 10 billion yuan. The plan also shows that the expressways connected to the Humen Bridge will all be expanded to 10-12 lanes in both directions. The reconstruction and expansion project of the Guangzhou-Macau Expressway (Nansha to Zhuhai Section) will be expanded from 6 lanes to 10 lanes in both directions, with the entire line planned to be completed and opened to traffic in 2027. Meanwhile, the Yongguan-Dongguan-Foshan Expressway (Changping to Humen Section) will have its main line expanded from 6 lanes to 10-12 lanes in both directions, with completion planned for 2028.

　　The toll collection period may be extended accordingly.

　　The Humen Bridge was completed and opened to traffic in 1997. As a key corridor of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, its main navigation channel span is 888 meters, and it is known as "China's No. 1 Cross-Sea Bridge." Over the 27 years since it opened to traffic, it has played an important role in the interconnection of cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and in economic prosperity and development. However, the continuous growth of traffic volume has left this major transportation artery overwhelmed.

　　The reconstruction and expansion of the Humen Bridge will not only extend the service life of the bridge but also better alleviate holiday congestion and improve traffic efficiency between the two places.

　　According to the 2023 annual report released by Yuexiu Transport Infrastructure, one of the shareholders of the Humen Bridge, the average daily toll revenue of the Humen Bridge in 2023 was 2.8255 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 48.1%, and the average daily tolled traffic volume was 103,600 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 43.6%.

　　However, it should be noted that after reconstruction and expansion, the toll collection period of the Humen Bridge may also be extended accordingly.

　　According to the "Regulations on the Administration of Toll Roads," which came into effect in 2004, the operating period of for-profit highways generally shall not exceed 30 years.

　　In 2018, the "Regulations on the Administration of Toll Roads (Revised Draft for Comments)" stipulated that the toll collection period of for-profit highways generally shall not exceed 30 years; for toll roads with large investment scale and long payback periods, it may exceed 30 years; and for the implementation of reconstruction and expansion projects of toll expressways that increase the number of expressway lanes, the debt repayment period or operating period may be re-determined.

　　The 2023 annual report released by Yuexiu Transport Infrastructure shows that the toll collection deadline for the Humen Bridge is May 8, 2029.