AKIPRESS.COM - A new bridge spanning the River Gambia is set to revolutionise travel and trade in the region, BBC reports. 

The Gambia is a thin sliver of land either side of the eponymous river, surrounded on three sides by Senegal.

The 1.9km (1.2 miles) Senegambia bridge near Farafenni links the two halves of The Gambia, as well as allowing people from the north of Senegal to reach the southern Senegalese province of Casamance with ease.

Up until now, people have had to use an unreliable ferry crossing or take the long route round The Gambia. Lorry drivers could spend days, and sometimes a week, in a queue waiting to cross meaning that perishable goods could spoil.

On Monday, people took the opportunity to make the crossing over the bridge for the first time.

It should now be possible to travel from Senegal's capital, Dakar, to Ziguinchor in Casamance in about five hours, rather than a full day, or sometimes even longer.

Celebrations broke out when the crossing, which took seven years to build, was formally opened by Gambia's President Adama Barrow and Senegal's President Macky Sall.