Chongqing - "Chongqing is a beautiful city, full of mountains and rivers, which creates a lot of opportunity for beautiful bridges to be built," said Matthew Cummings, President and CEO of T.Y.Lin International Group, during an exclusive interview with Bridging News on October 18.
The 7th International Forum of Sustainable Landscape City Development opened in Chongqing on October 18, bringing together global academicians, experts, and industry leaders. Under the theme "Urban Transition, Opening-up, and Fusion," discussions covered sustainable development, economic transformation, social inclusion, and technological innovation.
Zhu Changxi, Chairman of the China Engineering & Consulting Association, said that China's urban development has entered a new phase, moving from large-scale expansion to prioritizing upgrades of existing infrastructure and optimizing new projects. This shift emphasizes the need for urban renewal as people increasingly demand safer, more comfortable living environments and better public services.
Chen Xiangsheng, an Academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, emphasized that urban safety and resilience are critical in the face of accelerating climate change and major shifts in human civilization. He argued that city planning must account for ecological limits, climate adaptability, and the impact of global conflicts on human security.
Chen called for leveraging digital and intelligent technologies to design cities capable of withstanding extreme conditions. He also stressed preserving local culture and traditions in urban renewal, ensuring harmony between people and nature. Planners and designers, he urged, should learn from the past to build more sustainable cities for the future.
Cummings noted that Chongqing's bridges are comparable to the best in the world in terms of size and aesthetics. "They are very creative and beautiful structures, a testament to the vision of the designers and the community," he added. T.Y.Lin has played a significant role in the city's infrastructure, having designed 21 of Chongqing's bridges.
"Cities like Chongqing are opening up spaces for residents to engage with the natural environment," Cummings said, referring to the promenade along Chongqing's rivers as a prime example. He also pointed out how, in cities like New York and Chicago, T.Y.Lin has worked on transforming street networks for pedestrian and recreational use, which is increasingly mirrored in China.
"Sustainability is essential for the well-being of all of us and the planet," he explained. T.Y.Lin is actively working on electrifying vehicle fleets, developing offshore wind power, and promoting energy-efficient building designs. "We are incorporating these ideas into everything we do," Cummings said, noting the increasing use of electric vehicles in Chongqing as an encouraging development.
Looking ahead, Cummings remains optimistic about the future of the Chinese market. "China is a large, growing, ambitious country with significant infrastructure needs," he said, adding that while the market has faced challenges in recent years, the demand for infrastructure will continue to rise.
The forum also featured the unveiling of the Chongqing Railway Infrastructure Safety and Digital Operations Joint Innovation Center, a partnership between Chongqing University, Chongqing Rail Transit Group, and T.Y. Lin International China.
The center researches and applies key technologies in intelligent construction and entire lifecycle intelligent operation management. It aims to establish a digital management system for monitoring, trend forecasting, and emergency response, which will provide critical support for safety decision-making in rail transportation.
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