Construction of one of the world's largest cable-stayed bridges was completed in Vladivostok on Friday as the city is preparing to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit later this year.
The bridge, whose main span sets a record at 1,104 meters in length and which costs about 33.9 billion rubles ($1.1 billion) of federal money to build, will help boost the development of the city, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said during a videoconference with Vladivostok.
"It's obvious that the bridge will become one of the new symbols of Russia," he said.
The bridge stretches across the Eastern Bosphorus Strait to connect the continental part of the city to Russky Island – about 800 meters to the south – where the summit will take place.
It will facilitate access to Vladivostok's remote territories, as connection between the city center and Russky Island is now only possible by ferry.?
The bridge's infrastructure will be completed by July 1, the government said in a statement.
The work on the other bridge being built ahead of the summit and stretching across Zolotoi Rog Bay is also nearing completion, said First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov, who participated in the videoconference. Reuters reported Saturday that the final section of that bridge had been installed.
The people working on the bridges might be subsequently employed at other projects to develop the region, Putin said.
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