YANGON, Dec. 25 (Xinhua) -- A Myanmar-Korea cross-river friendship bridge project to link downtown Yangon and Dala, an under-developed small town lying on the southern bank of the Yangon River, has been launched to boost traffic and trade flow and narrow the development gap in western areas of Yangon region, Myanmar News Agency reported on Tuesday.

The ground-breaking ceremony in Dala was attended by State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi and Senior Economic Adviser of South Korea Kim Hyun-chul on Monday.

The four-lane cable-stayed bridge will be 6,144 feet (1.843 kilometers) long and have a water clearance of 160 feet height with a strength of withstanding 75 tons of load.

Of the cost of 168 million U.S. dollars, 136 million dollars will come from a loan of South Korea's Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) through the Exim Bank of South Korea, while the remaining 32 million U.S. dollars will be funded by the Myanmar government.

The bridge is designed to provide quicker access between Yangon and its western areas including Dala, Kawhmu and Kungyangon as well as Ayeyawaddy regions and Rakhine state upon completion.