The Huangjuewan Overpass, also known as “Panlong flyover”, is located in Chongqing, southwest China, and is considered the most complex highway intersection of the planet. Designed to solve the traffic problems of a constantly growing city, it is developed on 5 overlapping levels that intertwine like threads in a spider’s web. It is made up of 15 ramps – of which some are suspended a 37 meters high, the equivalent of a twelve-story building – and from 20 lanes which lead in 8 different directions, a labyrinth capable of confusing even satellite navigators. Started in 2009 and completed in just 8 yearsthe junction was opened to traffic in 2017, after an investment of over 600 million dollars.
The Huangjuewan Interchange overpass in Chongqing, China
When urban growth and traffic heading to Jiangbei city airport began to congest the road network, Chinese engineers took on an ambitious challenge: design a massive interchange overpass capable of connecting 8 among the main directions roads and strategic destinations of the city – from the international airport to the Chaotianmen and Dafosi bridges – within a limited urban space. The junction is in fact composed of 15 ramps and 20 lanesdistributed over 5 levels, for a total length of over 16 km.
Taking the right ramp, however, can be a real feat: its structure is so intricate that it has gone viral on Chinese social media with the nickname “asphalt labyrinth”: a maze of streets where it is difficult to orient yourself, despite the accurate signage, and where even the GPS, essential for getting out, risks losing your compass. The media success was such that the now famous overpass became a real one tourist attraction: you can admire it from above, from a special one viewing platform within nearby Huangjuewan Park.
An engineering challenge for mobility
The Huangjuewan Interchange connects important arteries such as the Chongqing Inner Ring Expressway and the G65 Baomao Expressway, representing a node strategic for the mobility of the entire region and the efficiency of urban transport. Its construction significantly reduced travel times between neighboring cities and the districts of Chongqing, one of the most populous metropolises in the world, developed on a mountainous territory and fragmented, and has always struggled with a complex road network and connections that are difficult to strengthen. Today, thanks to this important infrastructure, the journey from Chayuan New District Strict to Jiangbei can be completed in just 15 minutes, compared to the 40 needed before the opening of the interchange.
