The Kowloon-Canton Railway (KCR) Shilong South Bridge

The Kowloon–Canton Railway Shilong South Bridge

The Kowloon–Canton Railway Shilong South Bridge is a cultural relic protection unit of Guangdong Province.

The former site of the Shilong Railway South Bridge on the Guangzhou–Shenzhen Railway is located in Shilong Town, Dongguan City. In 1907, the Qing government borrowed funds to construct the Guangzhou–Shenzhen section of the Kowloon–Canton Railway, while the British built the Kowloon–Shenzhen section. The entire line was completed and opened to traffic in 1911.

The railway line runs southeast from Guangzhou Station, crosses the Dongjiang River and its tributaries at Shilong, passes through Zhangmutou, and reaches Shenzhen City. It then crosses the Shenzhen Bridge to Kowloon, Hong Kong, spanning a total length of 179 kilometers. It was the only railway line connecting the mainland with Hong Kong. The Kowloon–Canton Railway can be regarded as a lifeline linking Guangdong and Hong Kong. Before the liberation and up to the present, most of Hong Kong's supplies have relied on the mainland, and the Kowloon–Canton Railway has been the main transportation route for goods supplied to Hong Kong.

The Shilong South Bridge on the Guangzhou–Shenzhen Railway was repeatedly bombed by the Japanese army during the War of Resistance and underwent several major repairs after the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The original tracks are still well preserved. However, due to insufficient load-bearing capacity, it has been decommissioned.

In 1994, the Shilong South Grand Bridge of the Guangzhou–Shenzhen Railway was completed and opened to traffic. This bridge was awarded China's highest honor in the construction industry in 1995: the Luban Prize for China Construction Engineering.

In 2007, the Shilong South Bridge of the Guangzhou–Shenzhen Four-Track Railway was completed and opened to traffic, connecting the Guangzhou–Shenzhen Third and Fourth Track projects and linking to the Beijing–Kowloon Railway.

Thus, the three bridges—the Shilong South Bridge, the Shilong South Grand Bridge, and the Shilong South Four-Track Bridge—stand side by side, witnessing the development history of the Guangzhou–Shenzhen Railway and also serving as powerful evidence of the continuous advancement of railway construction technology in China.

In May 2013, the Kowloon–Canton Railway Shilong South Bridge was announced as part of the seventh batch of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites.

Shilong Town: A feng shui treasure where the ancient and beautiful northern mainstream and southern tributary of the Dongjiang River converge, forming a place of three wharves along one river—Shilong.

Shilong is bordered by Guangzhou to the north, Shenzhen to the south, and adjacent to Hong Kong. It lies 69 kilometers from Guangzhou and 78 kilometers from Shenzhen, and has long been an important port for water transport along the Dongjiang River.

Shilong has a long history of 800 years, with settlements dating back to the Song Dynasty. Thanks to the Dongjiang River flowing through the area, water transport has been extremely convenient. By the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, Shilong had already become a key town in Lingnan. In an era when waterways were the primary means of transport, Shilong had already emerged as a hub and strategic point for transport along the Dongjiang River... More details about Shilong Town++

Further reading:

· Seventh Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units in Guangdong Province

· Seventh Batch of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites