Wuhan construction resumes

Prevention and control of infection is still top priority for bridge project; public transport to also be restored

Early Tuesday morning, the No 7 Jianghan Bridge in Wuhan, Hubei province, resumed construction after a two-month suspension.

It's the first bridge project to resume in the city, the one hit hardest by the novel coronavirus.

With the outbreak under control, the local government is making steps to restart production in the city.

Designed to connect the city's two main districts of Hanyang and Qiaokou, the No 7 Jianghan Bridge covers 2.75 kilometers.

"The epidemic halted the construction for a while, but we have the determination and confidence to make up for the delays," said Mei Jiansong, who is in charge of the project on site.

According to the local epidemic prevention and control authority, enterprises undertaking major projects could resume operation on the premise of safety, but the prevention and control of the epidemic is still the top priority.

"We have prepared three guidelines on epidemic prevention, production and emergency management," said Mei.

The company managed to transport construction workers into Wuhan after inspection, and they were all isolated for 14 days before returning to work.

"All workers are required to receive food and eat separately for safety concerns, and everyone is required to report their health condition via WeChat daily," said Huang Rong, director of the project's office.

"We will also provide an extra bonus for those who follow the regulations."

Huang said the company has prepared 6,000 masks, 900 liters of disinfectant and 100 liters of alcohol in advance to meet the need of disease prevention.

It will keep monitoring workers' temperatures every day and immediately report cases of infection to the health department.

In addition to the bridge construction, the city is also preparing to restore the operation of public transportation as thorough disinfection was carried out at subway stations and trains on Sunday.

One hundred and ten buses also had test operations on Sunday.

The local authority said the public needs to register their identities to take public transportation or taxis in the city.

The public can use Alipay or WeChat for online identification before taking public transportation or taxis.

Those who fail to authenticate themselves will be barred from taking these vehicles.

Middle and primary school students, senior citizens and disabled people must show their IDs when they take taxis.

They must use their student cards, senior cards or cards for the disabled to board public transportation.

IDs are needed if they fail to bring these cards.

Passengers can scan bar codes on these vehicles to track their transportation records.

The work plan aims to guarantee the safety of the public, the local bureau of transportation said.

Xinhua contributed to this story.