Stunning and Amazing Bridges From Around The World

The Millau Viaduct - cable-stayed road-bridge, Tarn Valley

The Millau Viaduct  is a cable-stayed road-bridge that spans the valley of the river Tarn near Millau in southern France. Designed by the French structural engineer Michel Virlogeux and British architect Norman Foster, it is the tallest bridge in the world, with one mast's summit at 343.0 metres (1,125 ft). The viaduct is part of the A75-A71 autoroute axis from Paris to Montpellier. Construction cost was approximately €400 million. It was formally dedicated on 14 December 2004, inaugurated the day after and opened to traffic two days later. The bridge received the 2006 IABSE Outstanding Structure Award.

Fehmarn Belt Bridge, Baltic Sea

The Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link  is an immersed tunnel (in earlier design iterations a bridge) that is proposed to connect the German offshore island of Fehmarn with the Danish island of Lolland. This would cross over the Fehmarn Belt in the Baltic Sea – 18 km (11 mi) wide – hence providing a direct link by railroad and highway between northern Germany and the Danish island of Lolland, and thence to Zealand. This route is known in German as the Vogelfluglinie and in Danish as the Fugleflugtslinjen (literally, "bird flight line").

Fehmarn Island is already connected by bridge with the German mainland, and Lolland is already connected by bridge with Zealand. Furthermore, Zealand is already connected with the Swedish coast via the Øresund Bridge; the Fehmarn Belt fixed link would allow more direct transport between Germany and Sweden.

The Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link was tentatively expected to be completed in the year 2018, but the date has been changed to 2020. Originally conceived as a bridge, in December 2010 Femern A/S announced that a tunnel was preferable to a bridge as this would present fewer construction risks, although the financial cost would be broadly similar. Final approval is needed from the Danish government. This was reached by a large parliamentary majority in January 2011

Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Gateshead

The Gateshead Millennium Bridge is a pedestrian and cyclist tilt bridge spanning the River Tyne in England between Gateshead's Quays arts quarter on the south bank, and the Quayside of Newcastle upon Tyne on the north bank. The award-winning structure was conceived and designed by architects Wilkinson Eyre and structural engineers Gifford. The bridge is sometimes referred to as the 'Blinking Eye Bridge' or the 'Winking Eye Bridge' due to its shape and its tilting method. In terms of height, the Gateshead Millennium Bridge is slightly shorter than the neighbouring Tyne Bridge, and stands as the sixteenth tallest structure in the city.

Erasmusbrug Bridge, Rotterdam

The Erasmusbrug ("Erasmus Bridge") is a cable stayed bridge across the Nieuwe Maas (English: New Meuse) river, linking the northern and southern halves of the city of Rotterdam, Netherlands. The Erasmusbrug was designed by Ben van Berkel and completed in 1996. The 802 metre long bridge has a 139 metre-high asymmetrical pylon, earning the bridge its nickname of "The Swan".

The southern span of the bridge has a 89 metre long bascule bridge for ships that cannot pass under the bridge. The bascule bridge is the largest and heaviest in West Europe and has the largest panel of its type in the world. The bridge was officially opened by Queen Beatrix on September 6, 1996, having cost 165 million Dutch guilders (about 75 million euro) to construct. Shortly after the bridge opened to traffic in October 1996, it was discovered the bridge would swing under particularly strong wind conditions. To reduce the trembling, stronger shock dampers were installed.

The bridge featured in the 1998 Jackie Chan film Who Am I?. In 2005 several planes flew underneath the bridge as part of the "Red Bull Air Race". In 2005, the bridge served as the backdrop for a performance by DJ Tiësto titled "Tiësto @ The Bridge, Rotterdam". The performance featured fire fighting ships spraying jets of water into the air in front of the bridge, a fireworks barge launching fireworks beside the bridge, and multi coloured spot/search lights attached to the bridge itself. The bridge was crossed during the prologue and the opening stage of the 2010 Tour de France.

Kintaikyo (The Kintai Bridge), Iwakuni

The Kintai Bridge is a historical wooden arch bridge, in the city of Iwakuni, in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. The bridge was built in 1673, spanning the beautiful Nishiki River in a series of five wooden arches, and the bridge is located on the foot of Mt.Yokoyama, at the top of which lies Iwakuni Castle. Declared a National Treasure in 1922, Kikkou Park, which includes the bridge and castle, is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Japan, especially for the Cherry Blossom festival in the spring and the autumn color change of the Japanese Maples.

Kintaikyo is Possibly one of the most unlucky bridges in the world, Kintaikyo was reconstructed in the town of Iwakuni in 1673 after every other attempt to cross the Nishiki River via bridge had been foiled by seasonal flooding. Remarkably, the five wooden arches remained intact right up to 1950 when a typhoon finally destroyed them. However, intent on not being beaten, the bridge was again reconstructed three years later and is still crossable today!

Ponte Vecchio Bridge, Florence

The Ponte Vecchio is a Medieval bridge over the Arno River, in Florence, Italy, noted for still having shops built along it, as was once common. Butchers initially occupied the shops; the present tenants are jewellers, art dealers and souvenir sellers. It has been described as Europe's oldest wholly stone, closed-spandrel segmental arch bridge, but there are far older segmental arch bridges such as Alconétar Bridge. The Ponte Vecchio's two neighbouring bridges are the Ponte Santa Trinità and the Ponte alle Grazie.

Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the opening of the San Francisco Bay into the Pacific Ocean. As part of both U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1, the structure links the city of San Francisco on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula to Marin County. The Golden Gate Bridge was the longest suspension bridge span in the world when it was completed in 1937, and has become one of the most internationally recognized symbols of San Francisco, California, and of the United States. Despite its span length being surpassed by eight other bridges since its completion, it still has the second longest suspension bridge main span in the United States, after the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge in New York City. It has been declared one of the modern Wonders of the World by the American Society of Civil Engineers. The Frommers travel guide considers the Golden Gate Bridge "possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world", although Frommers also bestows the most photographed honor on Tower Bridge in London, England.

Tower Bridge, London

Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, England, over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, which gives it its name. It has become an iconic symbol of London. The bridge consists of two towers which are tied together at the upper level by means of two horizontal walkways which are designed to withstand the horizontal forces exerted by the suspended sections of the bridge on the landward sides of the towers. The vertical component of the forces in the suspended sections and the vertical reactions of the two walkways are carried by the two robust towers. The bascule pivots and operating machinery are housed in the base of each tower. The bridge's present colour dates from 1977 when it was painted red, white and blue for the Queen's Silver Jubilee. Originally it was painted a chocolate brown colour. Tower Bridge is sometimes mistakenly referred to as London Bridge,[citation needed] which is actually the next bridge upstream. The nearest London Underground station is Tower Hill on the Circle and District Lines, and the nearest Docklands Light Railway station is Tower Gateway.

Oresund Bridge, Oresund Strait

The Øresund or Oresund Bridge is a combined twin-track railway and dual carriageway bridge-tunnel across the Øresund strait. The bridge connects Sweden and Denmark, and it is the longest road and rail bridge in Europe. The Øresund Bridge also connects two major Metropolitan Areas: those of the Danish capital city of Copenhagen and the major Swedish city of Malmö. Furthermore, the Øresund Bridge connects the road network of Scandinavia with those of Central and Western Europe. The international European route E20 crosses this bridge-tunnel via the road, and the Öresund Railway Line uses the railway. The construction of the Great Belt Fixed Link – which connects Zealand to Funen and thence to the Jutland Peninsula – and the Øresund Bridge have connected Western and Central Europe to Scandinavia. The Øresund Bridge was designed by the Danish architectural practice Dissing+Weitling.

The purpose for the additional expenditure and complexity related to digging a tunnel for part of the way – rather than simply raising that section of the bridge – was to avoid interfering with airliners from the nearby Copenhagen International Airport, and also to provide a clear channel for ships in good weather or bad, and to prevent ice floes from blocking the strait. The Øresund Bridge crosses the border between Denmark and Sweden, but in accordance with the Schengen Agreement and the Nordic Passport Union, there are usually no passport inspections. There are random customs checks at the entrance toll booths for entering Sweden, but not for entering Denmark. The Øresund Bridge received the 2002 IABSE Outstanding Structure Award.

Tsing Ma Bridge, Hong Kong

The Tsing Ma Bridge is a bridge in Hong Kong. It is the world's seventh-longest span suspension bridge, and was the second longest at time of completion. The bridge was named after two of the islands at its ends, namely Tsing Yi and Ma Wan . It has two decks and carries both road and rail traffic, which also makes it the largest suspension bridge of this type. The bridge has a main span of 1,377 metres (4,518 ft) and a height of 206 metres (676 ft). The span is the largest of all bridges in the world carrying rail traffic.

The 41 metres (135 ft) wide bridge deck carries six lanes of automobile traffic, with three lanes in each direction. The lower level contains two rail tracks. There are also two sheltered carriageways on the lower deck for maintenance access and as backup for traffic when particularly severe typhoons strike Hong Kong. Though road traffic would need to be closed in that case, trains could still get through in either direction.

Sydney Harbour Bridge, Sydney

The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge across Sydney Harbour that carries rail, vehicular, bicycle and pedestrian traffic between the Sydney central business district (CBD) and the North Shore. The dramatic view of the bridge, the harbour, and the nearby Sydney Opera House is an iconic image of both Sydney and Australia. The bridge is locally nicknamed "The Coat Hanger" because of its arch-based design.

Under the directions of Dr J.J.C. Bradfield of the NSW Department of Public Works, the bridge was designed and built by English firm Dorman Long and Co Ltd of Middlesbrough, and opened in 1932. According to the Guinness World Records, it is the world's widest long-span bridge. It is also the fifth longest spanning-arch bridge in the world, and it is the tallest steel arch bridge, measuring 134 metres (440 ft) from top to water level. Until 1967 the Harbour Bridge was Sydney's tallest structure.

Hong Kong - Zhuhai - Macao Bridge, SE Asia

The in-construction Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is a series of bridges and tunnels that will connect the west side of Hong Kong to Macau and the Guangdong province city of Zhuhai, which are situated on the west side of the Pearl River Delta. The proposed 50 kilometres (31.1 mi) link is expected to cost USD $10.7 billion. With its length, it would become one of the landmarks within the area. Though overall length exceeds the Second Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in the United States, which is 38.4 kilometres (23.9 mi) long according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the longest bridge section (between the artificial islands containing the Macau exit of the tunnel and the Macau border facilities), which will include three cable-stayed spans with spans between 280 and 460 m, will be 22.8 kilometres (14.2 mi) long. Construction formally began on 15 December 2009. It is due to be completed in 2015-2016.

Bosphorus Bridge, Istanbul

The Bosphorus Bridge, also called the First Bosphorus Bridge (Turkish: Bog(aziçi Köprüsü or 1. Bog(aziçi Köprüsü) is one of the two bridges in Istanbul, Turkey, spanning the Bosphorus strait (Turkish: Bog(aziçi) and thus connecting Europe and Asia (the other one is the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge, which is called the Second Bosphorus Bridge.) The bridge is located between Ortaköy (on the European side) and Beylerbeyi (on the Asian side). It is a gravity anchored suspension bridge with steel pylons and inclined hangers. The aerodynamic deck is hanging on zigzag steel cables. It is 1,510 m (4,954 ft) long with a deck width of 39 m (128 ft). The distance between the towers (main span) is 1,074 m (3,524 ft) and their height over road level is 105 m (344 ft). The clearance of the bridge from sea level is 64 m (210 ft). The Bosphorus Bridge had the 4th longest suspension bridge span in the world when it was completed in 1973, and the longest outside the United States. At present, it is the 16th longest suspension bridge span in the world.

San Diego-Coronado Bridge, San Diego

The San Diego-Coronado Bridge, locally referred to as the Coronado Bridge, is a "prestressed concrete/steel" girder bridge, crossing over San Diego Bay in the United States, linking San Diego with Coronado, California. The bridge is signed as part of State Route 75. The 11,179-foot-long (3,407 m or 2.1 mi) bridge ascends from Coronado at a 4.67 percent grade before curving 80 degrees toward San Diego. The span reaches a maximum height of 200 feet (61m), allowing the U.S. Navy ships which operate out of the nearby Naval Station San Diego to pass underneath it. The five-lane bridge featured the longest box girder in the world until it was surpassed by a bridge in Chongqing, China in 2008. The bridge doesn't form a direct path to Coronado, but rather has a curve. This was done so it would be high enough for all U.S. Navy ships to pass underneath but not too steep for vehicles to ascend and descend.

The San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge construction started in February 1967, and the bridge was opened to traffic on August 3, 1969, during the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the founding of San Diego Originally, the toll was $0.60 in each direction. Several years later, this was changed to a $1 toll collected for traffic going westbound to Coronado only. Although the bridge was supposed to become "toll-free" once the original bridge bond was paid (which occurred in 1986), the tolls continued for sixteen additional years. In 2002, it became the last toll bridge in Southern California to discontinue tolls. The original toll booths on the Coronado side remained intact for a short while, and were temporarily replaced with newer, more modern-looking toll booths for the filming of a car commercial in April 2007. The islands upon which the toll booths sat, as well as the canopy over the toll plaza area, are still intact, located at the western end of the bridge in the westbound lanes. Though tolls are no longer collected, beginning February 19, 2009 there was talk of resuming westbound toll collection.

Akashi-Kaikyo, Kobe-Naruto

The Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge, also known as the Pearl Bridge, has the longest central span of any suspension bridge, at 1,991 metres (6,532 ft). It is located in Japan and was completed in 1998. The bridge links the city of Kobe on the mainland of Honshu- to Iwaya on Awaji Island by crossing the busy Akashi Strait. It carries part of the Honshu--Shikoku Highway. The bridge is one of the key links of the Honshu--Shikoku Bridge Project, which created three routes across the Inland Sea. The Akashi-Kaikyo bridge in Japan is the daddy of all suspension bridges, over 1,200ft longer than the 2nd place Great Belt Bridge in Denmark. Originally built to replace the dangerous Kobe-Iwaya ferry in 1998 which had suffered at the hands of numerous storms, the bridge crosses the Akashi Strait and cost around $4.5 billion to build. The statistics on this build are staggering; it took 2 million workers 10 years to build the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge. During that time they poured 1.4 million cubic meters of concrete, assembled 181,000 of structural steel, built 350,000 tonne anchor blocks at either end of the bridge and hooked up enough steel cable to circle the world 7 times!

Hangzhou Bay Bridge, Zhejiang

Hangzhou Bay Bridge is a long highway bridge with a cable-stayed portion across Hangzhou Bay in the eastern coastal region of China. It connects the municipalities of Jiaxing and Ningbo in Zhejiang province. At 35.673 km (22 mi) in length, Hangzhou Bay Bridge is the longest trans-oceanic bridge in the world, but it does not have the longest cable-stayed main span. It is also second in the world in overall length, with the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in the United States being 2.8 kilometers longer. Construction of the bridge was completed on June 14, 2007, and an opening ceremony was held on June 26, 2007, to great domestic media fanfare. The bridge was not opened to public use until May 1, 2008, after a considerable period of testing and evaluation. The bridge shortened the highway travel distance between Ningbo and Shanghai from 400 km (249 mi) to 280 km (174 mi) and reduced travel time from 4 to 2.5 hours.

Magdeburg Water Bridge, Magdeburg

The Magdeburg Water Bridge (German: Wasserstraßenkreuz) is a navigable aqueduct in Germany, opened in October 2003. It connects the Elbe-Havel Canal to the Mittelland Canal, crossing over the Elbe River. It is notable for being the longest navigable aqueduct in the world, with a total length of 918 metres (3,012 ft). The Elbe-Havel and Mittelland canals had previously met near Magdeburg but on opposite sides of the Elbe. Ships moving between the two had to make a 12-kilometre (7.5 mi) detour, descending from the Mittelland Canal through the Rothensee boat lift into the Elbe, then sailing downstream on the river, before entering the Elbe-Havel Canal through Niegripp lock. Low water levels in the Elbe often prevented fully laden canal barges from making this crossing, requiring time-consuming off-loading of cargo.

Grand bridges from The Grand Canyon
Water Bridge In Germany

Folding Bridge : A folding bridge is a type of movable bridge. 

Hörn Bridge, Kiel, Germany

The Hörn Bridge or Hörnbrücke is a folding bridge in the city of Kiel in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. One can describe it as a three-segment bascule bridge with a main span of 25.5 meters (84 ft) that folds in the shape of the letter N. The bridge was designed by Gerkan, Marg and Partners.The Hörn Bridge is a three-segment bascule bridge over the inner end of the Kiel Fjord (called Hörn) in the port of the German city of Kiel in Schleswig-Holstein. The bridge is a 25.5-meter-long, 5-meter-wide steel structure. This pedestrian bridge was built in 1997 and connects the city centre on the west bank of the Hörn with the Gaarden quarter and the Norwegenkai (Norway dock) on the east bank. It is one of the architectural and technical attractions of the city and is an important traffic route for pedestrians and cyclists. It was meant primarily as a route from the station to Norwegenkai for the passengers of the Oslo ferry line. The bridge construction cost 16 million DM, and its construction was viewed skeptically by many Kielians. There were repeated malfunctions of the mechanism upon startup, hence one of its nicknames, the "Klappt-Nix-Brücke" (Folds-not Bridge).

Pegasus Bridge, Normandy, France

Pegasus Bridge is a bascule bridge (a type of movable bridge), built in 1934, that crossed the Caen Canal, between Caen and Ouistreham, in Normandy, France. Also known as the Bénouville Bridge after the neighbouring village, it was, with the nearby Ranville Bridge over the river Orne, a major objective of Operation Deadstick past of Operation Tonga in the opening minutes of the invasion of Normandy. A gliderborne unit of the British 6th Airborne Division, commanded by Major John Howard was to land, take the bridges intact and hold them until relieved. The successful taking of the bridges played an important role in limiting the effectiveness of a German counter-attack in the days and weeks following the invasion. In 1944 it was renamed Pegasus Bridge in honour of the operation. The name is derived from the shoulder emblem worn by the British airborne forces, which is the flying horse Pegasus.

Burnside Bridge, Portland, Oregon

The Burnside Bridge is a bascule bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon. Including approaches, the Burnside has a total length of 2,308 ft (703 m) and a 251 ft (77 m) center span. While lowered this span is normally 64 ft (20 m) above the river. The deck is made of concrete, which contributes to its being one of the heaviest bascule bridges in the United States. The counterweights, housed inside the two piers, weigh 1,700 short tons (1,518 long tons; 1,542 t). The lifting is normally controlled by the Hawthorne Bridge operator, but an operator staffs the west tower during high river levels. The bridge provides shelter for the initially unauthorized Burnside Skatepark under the east end, and the Portland Saturday Market was formerly held most weekends under the west end.

Submersible bridge

A submersible bridge is a type of movable bridge that lowers the bridge deck below the water level to permit waterborne traffic to use the waterway. This differs from a lift bridge or table bridge, which operate by raising the roadway. Two submersible bridges exist across the Corinth Canal, one at each end, in Isthmia and Corinth. They lower the centre span to 8 metres below water level when they give way to ships crossing the channel. The submersible bridge's primary advantage over the similar lift bridge is that there is no structure above the shipping channel and thus no height limitation on ship traffic. This is particularly important for sailing vessels. Additionally, the lack of an above-deck structure is considered aesthetically pleasing, a similarity shared with the Chicago-style bascule bridge and the table bridge. However, the presence of the submerged bridge structure limits the draft of vessels in the waterway. The term submersible bridge is also sometimes applied to a non-movable bridge that is designed to withstand submersion and high currents when the water level rises. Such a bridge is more properly called a low water bridge.

The Rolling Bridge, London, UK

The Rolling Bridge, A curling bridge is a type of movable bridge, of which the sole example shown here is The Rolling Bridge, built in 2004 as part of the Grand Union Canal office & retail development project at Paddington Basin, London. The bridge was conceived by British designer Thomas Heatherwick, designed by SKM Anthony Hunt with Packman Lucas, and built by Littlehampton Welding Ltd. The Hydraulic design and development was done by Primary Fluid Power Ltd in the North West. The bridge consists of eight triangular sections hinged at the walkway level and connected above by two-part links that can be collapsed towards the deck by hydraulic cylinders, which are concealed in vertical posts in the bridge parapets. When extended, it resembles a conventional steel and timber footbridge, and is 12 metres long. To allow the passage of boats, the hydraulic pistons are activated and the bridge curls up until its two ends join, to form an octagonal shape measuring one half of the waterway's width at that point.