SHIJIAZHUANG, July 25 (Xinhua) -- North China's Hebei Province has released technical standards for glass suspension bridges and walkways at scenic areas to better ensure the safety of tourists, local authorities said.
According to the Hebei Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the standards provide specific guidelines for materials, location, design, and construction of glass bridges and walkways.
Glass suspension bridges should not be built in areas with high seismic activity. Additional protective equipment and warning signs written in Chinese and at least one foreign language should be installed in potentially dangerous sections, the standards said.
Glass suspension bridges and walkways should be closed during bad weather and natural disasters, such as typhoons, heavy rain, thunderstorms, mountain torrents and mudslides.
The number of pedestrians on glass bridges and walkways will be limited to no more than three per square meter.
The technical standards will take effect on Aug. 1.
Chinese tourist sites in mountainous areas often install glass bridges to attract visitors. The most famous is at Zhangjiajie, a tourist destination in central China, where a 430-meter-long, six-meter-wide bridge hangs between two steep cliffs 300 meters above the ground.
