On January 13, pile foundation excavation officially began for the north bank main pier of the Three Gorges Bridge on the Yichang West Ring Expressway, invested by Hubei Communications Investment Group and constructed by CCCC Second Harbor Engineering Co., Ltd. It is reported that the upper deck of the Three Gorges Bridge carries a dual-direction, 8-lane expressway, while the lower deck features a slow-traffic system and tourism and sightseeing facilities, making it Hubei Province's first bridge-tourism integration project.

The Yichang West Ring Expressway starts in Yiling District of Yichang City, crosses the Yangtze River, passes through Dianjun District, and ends at Gaojiayan Town in Changyang Tujia Autonomous County, with a total length of about 47 kilometers. Section 2, constructed by CCCC Second Harbor Engineering Co., Ltd., has a route length of 1.95 kilometers, and its main construction scope includes the Yiling-side main bridge of the Three Gorges Bridge, the north bank approach bridge, as well as the G348 overpass, the Xiling Gorge interchange, and the subgrade works at the start of the section.

The Three Gorges Bridge is located between the Three Gorges Project and the Gezhouba Hub, and is a typical mountain canyon bridge. With a main span of 1,200 meters and a width of 42.6 meters, it is currently the widest steel truss suspension bridge over the Yangtze River and also the "First Gateway of the Three Gorges." The north bank main tower is 190 meters high, and the bridge deck is 270 meters above the river surface, the highest over the Yangtze River. The upper deck of the bridge carries a dual-direction, 8-lane expressway, while the lower deck features a slow-traffic system and tourism and sightseeing facilities, integrating transportation services, Three Gorges scenery viewing, agricultural and forestry creative experiences, regional cultural tourism, and mountain health and vacation functions, making it Hubei Province's first bridge-tourism integration project.

The Yichang West Ring Expressway is a key construction project in Hubei Province's 14th Five-Year Plan and has been selected as a demonstration project of the Ministry of Transport's Transport Powerhouse initiative. Once completed, Yichang's urban ring expressway will change from a "C" shape to a closed "O" loop, which is of great significance for optimizing the regional expressway network and river-crossing channel layout, improving the comprehensive transportation system of the Three Gorges, and serving the construction of the national major strategic project of the new Three Gorges water transport channel.