What bridge lies on earth. The highest bridges in the world: description, photo
The definition of the longest bridge in the world is quite vague. Therefore, I invite you to get acquainted with the longest bridge in the world over water.
It is called Qingdao Haiwan Bridge and is located in China.
The length of the bridge is 42,500 meters, and it cost the Chinese government $8.72 billion.
If you don’t “bother” with where the bridge is located, then the longest bridge should be considered the Bang Na highway in Thailand.
The length of the giant is 54 kilometers.
The longest suspension bridge (determined by the length of the main span) is located in Japan.
It connects the city of Kobe (Honshu Island) and the city of Awaji (the island of the same name).
The central span of this bridge is 1991 meters long, which is actually a record. The total length of the bridge is 3911 meters. Oh yes, it's called Akashi-Kaikyo.
The world's longest dam bridge is located in the United States and runs across Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana.
The bridge consists of two independent roads. The one that is longer is 38 kilometers and 420 meters. The total number of concrete bridge piles exceeds 9,000!
In Rotterdam, Holland, there is another “record holder” called the Erasmus Bridge.
It consists of two structures and is a single-support suspension bridge.
Before you is the world's longest drawbridge, Erasmusbrug.
Its length is 802 meters.
The world's longest bicycle-pedestrian bridge is the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge, located on the Mississippi River in Illinois.
Until 1967, the legendary Route 66 passed through this bridge, but the route was subsequently changed.
For 31 years the bridge was essentially empty, until in 1999 it was officially designated as a bicycle and pedestrian bridge. The total length of the bridge is 1631 meters
The longest wooden bridge in the world is located in Myanmar and is called U Bein.
It was built back in 1849, and its length is 1.2 kilometers.
The longest natural bridge in the world is considered to be the Rainbow Bridge, which was formed as a result of rock being washed away by a stream of river water.
The bridge is located in the USA, Utah.
Its height (88.4 meters) is greater than its length (83.8 meters).
The funny longest plastic bridge is located in the Scottish town of Aberfeldy and leads to the local golf club. The total length of the Wade Bridge is 113 meters.
The longest aqueduct bridge (water bridge) is located in German city Magdeburg.
It allows two canals to intersect - the Central German Canal and the canal connecting the Elbe and Havel rivers.
The total length of the bridge is 918 meters and, in addition to ships, pedestrians can walk across it.
The Millau Viaduct, located in France, is very beautiful and futuristic.
The bridge was created to relieve congestion on the road passing through the town of Millau, which suffers from tourist congestion every summer. The highway on which the viaduct is located connects Paris and Southern City Bezier.
The maximum height of the bridge support is 341 meters, which is higher Eiffel Tower! The total length is 2460 meters.
At the time of construction of the viaduct it was considered the highest. However, the Chinese were ahead here too. The newly built Si Du River Bridge across the Siduhe River is raised to a height of 472 meters, with a total length of 1222 meters.
Another one of the highest bridges in the world is located in the American state of Colorado, above the Royal Gorge. Royal Gorge Bridge was previously used by cars, but is now used only by pedestrians.
The Arkansas River snakes along the bottom of the gorge, and the distance from the bridge to the surface of the water below is 321 meters.
The length of the bridge is only 384 meters, and the width is 5 meters.
Sources claim that if the concept of "highest bridge" is considered in relation to the height above sea level, then the highest bridge should be the Bailey Bridge in the Indian Himalayas, located in the Ladakh Valley.
If we consider that the valley itself is on average at an altitude of 5602 meters, the conclusion is simple. But there is not a single photo of the bridge. Therefore, we take his word for it. The widest long-span bridge in the world is located in the Australian city of Sydney and runs across the entire city harbor. The width of Sydney Harbor Bridge is as much as 49 meters, with a length of 1149 meters. It includes bicycle and pedestrian paths, two railway tracks and an eight-lane highway for cars. The total weight of the steel bridge structures is 52,800 tons.
Well, if we consider all the bridges, it turns out that the most wide bridge located in St. Petersburg
It crosses the Moika River and is called the Blue Bridge. Its width is, in fact, equal to the width of St. Isaac's Square, into which it seems to have grown. The width of the bridge is almost three times its length! The Blue Bridge is 97.3 meters wide! For those who don’t see it, a hint: in the photo it starts right behind the monument
The bridge with the highest actual capacity is the Howrah Bridge in the Indian city of Kolkata over the Hooghly River, which flows into the Ganges.
The bridge's daily traffic capacity is 4 million pedestrians and about 150,000 vehicles.
The Zavikon Island Bridge is officially considered the shortest in the world. Its length is only ten meters.
The bridge is international as it connects two islands, one of which belongs to Canada and the other to the United States. Located in a region called the Thousand Islands.
It is unknown who and when was the first to throw a log across the river to cross to the other bank. But from that moment on, humanity began to gradually move closer to the construction of modern bridges with advanced technologies. The invention of the canopy crossing can be called one of the cornerstones of historical progress. Bridges not only unite the banks - they connect the destinies of people, they allow one to admire the beauty of nature from an unusual angle. Often they themselves become an object of interest and admiration due to their venerable age, the beauty of architecture or unique parameters. One of the categories that characterize bridges is their height. And thanks to progress, the list of the highest bridges in the world is gradually increasing. We will look at them in the article.
The active development of bridge construction in China has led to the fact that a large number of record-breaking bridges are located in this country. At the end of 2016, they were joined by the Beipanjiang Bridge, spanning the river of the same name and connecting the southwestern provinces of Yunnan and Zhejiang. This object has already secured the title of the highest suspension bridge in the world - the highest point is at the 565-meter mark or at the level of the 200th floor of the skyscraper. In addition, he is considered one of the pioneers of buildings of this type in Asian mountainous regions.
The Beipanjiang Bridge is a cable-stayed suspension structure. It rests on two pylons in the shape of the letter “H” on opposite sides of the river gorge. In addition to steel cables, the reliability of the building is ensured by a stiffening beam under the main span. The construction of the 4-lane bridge, which is part of the expressway, took 3 years and required an investment of $150 million.
Millau (France)
In the list of the highest bridges in the world, the Millau Viaduct over the Tarn River Valley is far from the last place. This building is considered one of the signs of France - cable-stayed bridge is part of the route connecting the capital and the town of Beziers, in which many elite educational institutions. Therefore, fast communication between the two cities is especially important. If you take overall height with pylons, the viaduct (343 m) is slightly lower (40 m) than the Empire State Building, but exceeds the “height” of the Eiffel Tower (37 m). A road surface with 4 lanes hovers above the valley at an altitude of 270 meters.
The Millau Viaduct, the highest bridge on the planet, was commissioned at the end of 2004. Design work took 10 years, but construction was delayed for 3 years due to strong winds and difficult terrain. Design workshops that at one time designed and main symbol Paris. The metal road surface was installed on supports using the method of extension from opposite sides, sending commands via satellite.
Quite often the river valley is shrouded in thick fog - and then the bridge floats among the clouds. But the viaduct looks especially impressive at night. Illuminated 7 pylons with red lights at the top and wings of stretched cables look like alien ships at the start. And the light from 7 pillars “walking” through the valley turns it into a mysterious world.
Russian Bridge (Russia)
Among the tallest bridges in the world worthy place assigned to Russian. In terms of the height of its two pylons, it is only slightly inferior to the French Millau. The height of the Russian Bridge is 321 meters (versus 343 French meters). The name of the relatively young (2012) bridge was given by Fr. Russian, who thanks to this facility received road communication with the coastal part of Vladivostok.
The construction of a bridge across the strait was brewing throughout the 20th century. But the engineering projects of 1939 and 1960 did not meet the technical objectives. In 2008, in preparation for APEC summit the most advanced concept at that time was designed, which was brought to life in 2012. The bridge as a development transport system The Vladivostok link instantly became a symbol of the capital of Primorye - it is called one of the wonders of the Far East.
The uniqueness of the Russian Bridge lies in its three-kilometer length and the length of the central span, which at a height of 70 m from the water extends to 1104 meters - according to this indicator, it is the first in the world among bridges. In addition, the latest methods were used during construction: continuous concreting and the use of
The bridge is designed for vehicular traffic only (4 lanes) - pedestrians are strictly prohibited from crossing the structure. The beauty and significance of the Russian Bridge is confirmed by its image on the new 2 thousand banknotes of Russia.
Sutun. Pride of China
The Sutong cable-stayed bridge, one of the numerous cohorts of the tallest bridges in China, has been in operation since mid-2008. This cable-stayed giant, in terms of its parameters, in the list of the tallest bridges in the world follows immediately after the Russian giant - each of its two pylons reaches 306 m in height, and the central span lacks 16 m to the span of the Russian bridge.
The task of the bridge builders was to connect two cities from different districts of China, which they successfully accomplished. The Sutong cable-stayed bridge (China) enters the river delta in a smooth arc. Yangtze and extends 8206 m above its main fairway. The road surface is raised 62 m above the water for the unhindered passage of ships and container ships. The bridge has become a landmark in China, playing an important role in the rapid economic growth of areas in the southern reaches of the river. The Yangtze, where cities such as Shanghai are located.
Sutun is the engineering and economic pride of the Celestial Empire, since the design and financing of the gigantic structure took place on the state’s own without the involvement of international assistance.
Bridge in Japan
An engineering miracle of Japanese bridge builders is the Akashi-Kaike, or Pearl, suspension bridge. It is the connecting link between the islands of Honshu and Awaji. At the time of its opening (1998), it was considered the highest bridge in the world, as its two pylons rose 282.8 m above the waters of the Akashi Strait. Later, structures that were more impressive in height were built, but the scale and uniqueness of Akashi-Kaike did not suffer from this.
The Japanese giant is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest suspension bridge in the world (3911 m) - it is equal to approximately 4 Brooklyn Bridges. The length of its central span is also phenomenal - 1991 m. Near the bridge there is a museum telling about its construction.
The longest Pearl Bridge was made by an earthquake that occurred during construction and moved one of the pylons away from the design site by 1 m. But otherwise it is an extremely stable object: it is not dangerous from tremors up to magnitude 8.5, it can withstand the strongest currents of the strait and wind speed up to 80 m/s. The service life of Zhemchuzhny is designed for 200 years, and in the future it can become both a road and rail crossing.
But the bridge has a significant drawback - travel across it is expensive, so most residents use the ferry or public transport.
Highest railway bridge
The highest, like many road bridges that for some time bore the title of the highest in the world, is located in China. This facility connects the slopes of the famous Beipanjiang Canyon in the southwestern province of Guizhou in the vicinity of the city of Liupanshui. The bridge is an arch type structure with one span and a passage along the upper part. Highest point the building is located at 275 meters. The railway bridge has been in operation since 2001.
Transport facilities
The list of the highest transport bridges in the world is constantly changing. But currently it looks like this:
- Beipanjiang Road Bridge (China) - 565 m.
- Millau automobile viaduct (France) - 343 m.
- Automobile Russian Bridge (Russia) - 321 m.
- Sutong Road Bridge (China) - 306 m.
- Road Pearl Bridge (Japan) - 282.8 m, in the future - and railway.
- Beipanjiang Canyon Railway Bridge (China) - 275 meters.
Pedestrian bridges of the world
The Kokonoe Yume Suspension Bridge is for pedestrians only. This is one of the highest pedestrian bridges in Japan - its structures reach a height of 173 meters. The facility is located in the city of Kokonoe. At the same time, 1,800 vacationers can walk along the bridge, admiring the Kyushu Valley, Sindu Falls, or simply pictures of nature underfoot through the bars of the central span. Unusual pedestrian bridge on the island is named after the Sky Bridge for its location at an altitude of 700 meters and the magnificent views that open from it. The entire arc-shaped structure seems to float in the air, resting on a single support - an 82-meter column. This bridge is not the highest, it is only located at an unprecedented level. But it holds another record - it is the longest suspension bridge of a curved design in the world (125 m).
The highest pedestrian bridge is a glass structure in China. It opened to visitors in 2016 and is located in Zhangjiajie Forest Park. The height of its structures is 300 m, and the bridge itself is thrown from cliff to cliff at an altitude of 260 meters. The complex technical system consists of a steel frame and 120 glass panels. The structure can support the weight of 800 people walking along it at one time.
Bridges always attract people's attention with their technical characteristics or special appearance. They fascinate with the opportunity to admire the landscapes from unusual vantage points. And the inquisitive human mind will always create new bridge designs with the highest parameters.
Bridges are divided according to the places they pass through into bridges themselves (bridges carry vehicles and people across rivers, lakes, swamps, straits and other bodies of water), overpasses (they are built over another road) and viaducts (they are built over a ravine, gorge, hollow etc.). Each of these types of bridges has its own “record holders” - bridges that have the most long length. You can find out about the longest bridges on the planet in this top 10 largest bridges in the world.
10 Runyang Bridge
The length of this bridge is 35.66 km. It is located in China, in the Jiangsu province. The bridge stretches from the city of Zhenjiang to the city of Yangzhou, which are located on different banks of the Yangtze River. The Zhunyang Bridge opened shortly before May 1, 2005. This road bridge, which is part of the Beijing-Shanghai Expressway, has 6 lanes.
9 Hangzhou Bay Bridge
This bridge is 35.673 km long. This bridge is also called the Great Transoceanic Bridge over the Hangzhou Bay. The bridge is located in China and connects two cities: Shanghai and Ningbo. The Hangzhou Bay Bridge is the longest transoceanic bridge in the world. The bridge opened on May 1, 2008. Traffic on this road bridge is possible in two directions. There are three lanes on each side. Halfway across the bridge there is an island platform. It houses a service center where drivers and passengers have the opportunity to relax, refresh themselves and take advantage of a variety of services.
8 Yangcun Bridge
The Yangcun Bridge is 35.812 km long. The bridge is located in China and is part of the high-speed railway connecting Beijing with Tianjin. This bridge was opened in 2008 and is the longest flyover bridge in China.
7 Menchek Swamp Bridge
The length of this bridge is 36,710 km. The Manchek Swamp Bridge is located in the USA, in Louisiana. The bridge was built in 1979 as part of the Louisiana Turnpike. The Menchek Swamp Bridge allows vehicles to pass over the marshy area. Since the soil on which the bridge was built was quite unstable, the piles had to be driven to a depth of 75 m or deeper.
6 Causeway Bridge over Lake Pontchartrain
This bridge stretches over a length of 38.422 km. This bridge is also called the bridge between Mandeville and Metairie - this is the name of the cities located on different shores of Lake Pontchartrain and connected by this bridge. The dam bridge across Lake Pontchartrain is located in the USA, in Louisiana. This bridge is supported by more than 9,000 concrete piles. This bridge was built in 1969.
5 Qingdao Bay Bridge
This bridge is 42.5 km long. Qingdao Bay Bridge is located in China. The bridge is located in the northern part of Jiaozhou Bay and stretches from the city of Qingdao to the suburban industrial area of Huangdao. The bridge was opened in 2011. This road bridge has 6 lanes.
4 Bang Na Highway
This road bridge stretches for a length of 54 km. The Bang Na Highway is located in Bangkok, Thailand. This bridge is an overhead bridge-type structure. The bridge helps relieve traffic jams when entering the city. The Bang Na highway has three lanes in each direction. In order to travel on the Bang Na highway, you need to pay, but travel on the surface road is free. This bridge was opened on February 7, 2000.
3 Bridge over Wei
The length of the railway bridge over the Wei is impressive - 79.732 km. It is located in China and connects the cities of Zhengzhou and Xi'an. The Wei Bridge is part of the Zhengzhou High Speed Rail Line. The bridge crosses the Wei River twice and also crosses other rivers, railways and car roads. The Wei Bridge opened on 6 February 2010.
The length of this railway bridge is 164.8 km. The Danyang-Kunshan Viaduct is located in China and is part of the Beijing-Shanghai High Speed Railway. This bridge opened on June 30, 2011. About 9 km of the Danyang-Kunshan Viaduct is laid over the water surface. The largest body of water that is crossed by this bridge is Yangcheng Lake.
There are others interesting bridges. They stand out among similar structures not by their length, but by some other qualities, for example, width (Blue Bridge in Russia, in St. Petersburg) or unusual appearance (Banpo Fountain Bridge in the Republic of Korea, in Seoul).
Bridges are massive structures made of concrete and metal that weigh thousands of tons and remain standing even during devastating natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods and hurricanes. Bridges allow people to cross numerous natural obstacles such as lakes and rivers and are an integral part of modern rail transportation.
Despite their importance, you probably haven't read many books or articles praising the greatness of bridges. Let's correct this omission. Here the most long bridges in the world, the length of which exceeds even Russia’s newest achievement - the 19-kilometer Crimean Bridge.
10. Hangzhou Bay Bridge – 35.6 km
This is a cable-stayed bridge that runs from Jiaxing City to Ningbo in the Zhejiang Province of China. The longest pedestrian bridge in the world, designed in Switzerland and proudly called “European”, looks like a mere baby in comparison with the Chinese bridge. After all, the length of the “European” is only 494 meters.
Due to the many difficulties such a monumental structure faces, 600 experts spent nearly ten years designing the bridge. One of the main problems was offshore construction. As a solution, several parts of the bridge were created on land and then transported to the area for which they were built.
In the center of the bridge, a service center for travelers with an area of 10,000 square meters was built, called “Land between Sea and Sky”. This center consists of shops, parking, a restaurant, a hotel and a 145.6-meter observation tower, which serves as a tourist attraction. The center is built on an island, which is a platform resting on stilts so as not to interfere with sea currents in the bay.
9. Yangcun Bridge – 35.8 km
Built as part of the Beijing-Tianjin railway link, this elevated bridge is used for high-speed trains that travel at speeds of 350 kilometers per hour.
8. Menchek Swamp Bridge – 36.7 km
The first, but not the last bridge built in the USA on our list. Although its daily traffic (about 2,250 vehicles) pales in comparison to some of the country's newer bridges, the structure remains an engineering feat. After all, Manchek Swamp was built in 1979.
The bridge passes over the swamps, in which, according to legend, the werewolf Lugaru lived and a priestess who practiced the cult of voodoo lived. Legend has it that the priestess cast a curse on the area, and indeed a hurricane swept away three towns on the day of her funeral in 1915. Although the previous Menchek Swamp Bridge collapsed in 1976, the current structure successfully resists any curse and remains indestructibly reliable.
7. Dam bridge over Lake Pontchartrain – 38.4 km
Although the Chinese hold the lead on our list, the American bridge holds the title of longest continuous flight over water. This trestle bridge bisects Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana and is supported by nine thousand concrete piles.
6. Qingdao Bridge – 42.5 km
The construction of a highway connecting the Chinese port city of Qingdao with the suburb of Huangdao was carried out from 2007 to 2011. and demanded about 60 billion yuan ($9.35 billion). The space of the Qingdao Bridge is divided into six lanes, and the multi-ton structure is supported by over 5,200 supports. Every day 300 thousand cars pass through the bridge.
5. Bang Na Highway – 54 km
The six-lane bridge is located in Bangkok, the capital of Thailand. The highway was completed in 2000, after five long years of work and billions of dollars in funding. A total of 1,800,000 cubic meters of concrete were used for the structure.
4. Bridge over Wei – 79.7 km
Part of a large railway line, running between east and west China. The bridge connects the city of Zhengzhou in Henan province and the city of Xi'an in Shaanxi province. It became the first high-speed passenger railway in western China, and cost about 35.3 billion yuan ($5.4 billion).
3. Tianjin Great Bridge – 113.7 km
The third longest viaduct bridge is part of the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail link. It runs between Langfang County and Qingxian County.
2. Zhanghua-Kaohsiung Viaduct, 157.3 km
This bridge is only a few meters inferior to the longest bridge in the world over water. Changhua-Kaohsiung is part of the high-speed network railways Taiwan and carries over 200 million passengers monthly.
1. The longest bridge in the world: Danyang-Kunshan Viaduct - 164.8 km
China is not the only country that builds large and expensive bridges. However, only the PRC has built the three longest bridges in the world over water. And the longest of them is the viaduct connecting Shanghai with Nanjing. This grandiose structure is noted in the Guinness Book of Records.
The bridge, which opened in 2011, cost, according to various sources, between $8.5 and $10 billion. 10,000 people were involved in its construction. In total, the bridge is supported by 9,500 concrete piles.
The Danyang-Kunshan Bridge is unique in that it crosses many different places. It covers rivers, canals, chasms, streams, plains, hills, lakes and rice fields. The largest body of water it crosses is Yangcheng Lake in Suzhou. The builders faced a difficult task - to make the bridge universal and as stable as possible. After all, the vast majority of land in the river floodplain consists of soft soils, not hard rocks. Therefore, the designers decided to choose the form of a viaduct - a bridge consisting of numerous small spans, rather than several very long ones. In this case, the spans will give the bridge the flexibility necessary for ascents, descents and turns. At the same time, the viaduct remains very strong throughout its entire length.
However, the title of “the longest suspension bridge in the world” is still held by the creation of Japanese engineers. The total length of the “Pearl” Bridge (Akashi-Kaikyo) is 39.1 km. The longest suspension bridge in the world spans the Akashi Strait, connecting the city of Kobe on the island of Honshu with the island of Awaji. It is not afraid of strong underwater currents, and if necessary, the structure will withstand earthquakes of magnitude 8.5.
Hangzhou, China
The longest road bridge This is the one that is recognized in the world because its length is thirty-six kilometers. This transoceanic structure reduced the distance between Ningbo and Shanghai by three hundred and twenty kilometers. Such a large-scale construction made a huge contribution to transport infrastructure China.
2nd place 
Millau, France
The title of the highest bridge is occupied by Millau, or as it is sometimes called Millot. Having grown to 343 meters, the handsome man has the right to boast of his highest supports. The miracle, 2.4 km long, came out of the skillful hands of the English architect Norman Foster and the French engineer Michel Virlojo. The traffic is two-way, each direction has 2 lanes.
3rd place 
Golden Gate, USA
This is simply a three-kilometer legend (length 2,737 m), because for many years it held the palm among suspension bridges. It is also considered the most recognizable bridge, often appearing in various pictures, screensavers, frames of films and TV series. Maybe that’s why suicides are drawn to him like a magnet. Rarely does a month go by without some crazy person trying to commit suicide here.
Tower Bridge, UK
The famous design is a recognized symbol of Great Britain. An exceptional feature of the bridge is that a multi-ton colossus can be lifted in just 1 minute. The ingenious creators prudently created special pedestrian galleries that make it possible not to stop the flow of people while ships pass. The bridge has existed since one thousand eight hundred and ninety-four.
5th place 
Vasco da Gama, Portugal
1998 marks exactly five hundred years since Vasco da Gama discovered sea route Europe - India. It was in honor of this Portuguese navigator that this beautiful seventeen-kilometer bridge was named, including the main road, viaducts, and access roads. The design can withstand powerful gusts of wind and strong earthquakes.
6th place 
Bosphorus Bridge, Türkiye
This is who has the honor of connecting two continents: Asia and Europe. In addition, it unites the Asian and European parts of the Turkish state. More than half a million passengers cross this bridge every day. The authorities had to block pedestrian traffic due to constant suicide attempts.
Pearl Bridge, Japan 
A real miracle is the construction of a bridge in one of the most seismically unstable areas in the world. Many people know him under the name Akashi Kaike. The builders used so many steel cables when constructing the structure that if they were folded into one, they could girdle the Earth several times. For nine years, engineers and architects struggled with difficult natural conditions, but in the end they defeated them, creating this amazing structure.
8th place 
Banpo Bridge, Korea
Translated from Korean, Banpo (Panpo) means “rainbow”. Along one side of the bridge there is a fountain, the jets of which shoot to the side and down. It shimmers with all the colors of the rainbow, revealing an incredibly beautiful sight. The duration of this miracle is approximately one thousand one hundred meters.
Brooklyn Bridge, USA 
This masterpiece of engineering is one of New York's most popular attractions. For the first time, steel rods were used for construction. The bridge is located between Brooklyn and Manhattan. Traffic here is allowed for pedestrians, bicycles and cars. National Historic Landmarks designated the Brooklyn Bridge in the 1970s.
10th place 
Forth Bridge, Scotland
The construction of this steel railway giant continued for eight years. This impressive structure connects the Fife region and Edinburgh across the Firth of Forth.
