The bridge is also a key link on an expressway, forming part of Guizhou's ongoing push to knit together its rugged interior via modern highways.

The province, the only one in China without a single plain, has long relied on tunnels and bridges to overcome its jagged karst landscape. Guizhou is now home to more than 30,000 bridges, including the world's three tallest.

Nearly half of the world's top 100 highest bridges are located in Guizhou, earning it the nickname "the world's bridge museum." Together, Guizhou's built and under-construction spans measure more than 5,400 kilometers -- nearly the total north to south distance of the entire China.

For communities on both sides, the Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge will be more than a record-breaker. It will be a development that turns an impassable gorge into a quick commute, and proof of how even China's most rugged terrain can be linked, one span at a time.