Ecuador has inaugurated its longest segmental bridge, which was built by China-based Gaungxi Road & Bridge Engineering and funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

The bridge is 1,975m long and 20.8m wide, and crosses the Babahoyo River in Durán, Guayas province.

The four lanes are designed to accommodate 70,000 light and heavy vehicles daily, and has a bike lane, a sidewalk and two accesses.

The new bridge will reduce travel times and improve the transportation between the Ecuadorian coast and the country’s major market centers as well as neighboring countries.

It will also improve access between Guayaquil, La Puntilla, Durán and other cities in Ecuador.

The IDB provided $101.4m as part of a loan for $350m for the first road maintenance and infrastructure programme signed by the Ecuadorian Government in February 2010.