China and Vietnam officially opened a new crossborder bridge linking the city of Dongxing, China, with the city of Mong Cai in Vietnam on March 19.

The 27.7-meter-wide Beilun II bridge offers four main lanes and two auxiliary ones. Its opening means that the busy port of Dongxing will have two bridges,with improved capacity to serve booming border trade between China and Vietnam.

Construction of the bridge started in 2014 and was completed in September 2017, involving an investment of about 220 million yuan (US$32.7 million) from China and Vietnam.

The new bridge will be used for freight vehicles, while the existing Beilun bridge, three kilometers away, will be reserved for the passage of personnel only, officials said.

In 2018, trade between Dongxing and Vietnam reached 24.45 billion yuan. Dongxing port handled over 47,000 vehicles and about 12 million passengers, a record high.