Builders told Mr Putin that the bridge is 800 metres long and is being constructed by 800 workers. The unique technology used in erecting the structure has helped to cut construction time by one year.

Its second stage, according to the plan, will be built and put into operation in the next few years.

"We have arranged for the federal centre to start financing construction from 2010," Mr Putin said at the opening ceremony. "We agreed that the Governor of the Krasnoyarsk Territory will be the one to start the financing, while we will join in 2010, or perhaps a bit earlier."

In assessing the work done, Mr Putin said that "four years for such a project is a good pace." Mr Putin socialised with bridge builders and took part in the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Anatoly Perminov, head of Russia's Federal Space Agency, in turn explained to Mr Putin how the global navigation system (GLONASS) monitors the bridge condition. Mr Perminov said that various factors are monitored - natural, man-made, and operational. Sensors installed at strategic points on the bridge gather information on the state of its elements and send it to the monitoring processing centre and later to the territorial centre. The accuracy of its stability measurements is within 1 to 2 mm.

"This is the first practical application of the GLONASS system in the national economy," Mr Putin said.

The bridge's daily capacity is expected to be about 15,000 vehicles. When the second stage is completed in 2012, the figure is likely to rise to 18,000 vehicles.