It’s manmade structures like this that continue to awe people who travel to different parts of the world. In fact it’s structures like this that attract travellers from across the world. Here are some of man’s greatest and extraordinary bridges built.
Royal Gorge bridge — US
No other bridge in history has been more associated with being the “World’s Highest” than the Royal Gorge bridge, located in the US state of Colorado. Constructed in 1929, the it was the highest suspension bridge in the world for nearly 75 years with a roadway 955 feet (291 metres) above the Arkansas River. Source: http://highestbridges.com
Cape William Moore Bridge — Alaska
Built in 1976, the Cape William Moore Bridge has seen a lot of heavy action with plenty of trucks hauling ore back and forth over it. It bends a lot when you cross it and has been scheduled to be replaced. However website www.dangerousroads.org explains this unique bridge is located along the South Klondike Highway near Skagway, in Alaska. It was finished in 1976 and spans 110-foot over Moore Creek Gorge.
It’s one of the most spectacular bridges in the world.
Named after Captain William Moore, a pilot, prospector, packer, trader and riverboat captain, it crosses an active earthquake fault. Engineers, aware of the potential for disaster, anchored only one end of the bridge securely, so when the ground below shifts, the bridge isn’t torn apart. Engineers built with this fact in mind so only one side of the bridge is secured with the hopes that when the ground shifts the bridge remains intact and is not torn in half.
Seven Mile Bridge — Florida
No need to be scared. Go ahead and drive over the Seven Mile Bridge. It’s modern now.
Finished in 1982, the longest bridge in the Florida Keys is wide enough to give a motorist room to pull over to change a flat tyre and steal many glances at the perfectly green water.
The original bridge I grew up crossing was less friendly, narrow and harrowing, requiring concentration and a good grip on the steering wheel as you left Marathon Key on your way to Key West and suddenly found yourself driving over the ocean. Smart drivers kept eyes on the oncoming traffic instead of nature. The bridge seemed too constricted for two passing cars.
Completed in 1912, the old structure, initially a railroad bridge, was known as the “Eighth Wonder of the World” because even attempting to build something so ambitious over miles of open water and a soft bottom in a harsh tropical climate seemed a bit nutty. Source: http://www.visitflorida.com
Kuandinsky Bridge of Kuanda — Russia
Spanning 570 metres over the Vitim River, this treacherous crossing is just over two metres wide and has absolutely no railing or other safety features to keep cars or people from falling into the frozen waters. Its decaying metallic structure has not been well maintained, but rather simply covered with old wooden railway sleepers that become slippery when frozen over with ice and snow.
Originally designed as a railway bridge, as part of the Baikal-Amur Mainline, a 4324-km-long railway traversing Eastern Siberia and the Russian Far-East, Kuandinsky (aka Kalarsky) Bridge was never inaugurated, so the people of Kuanda, a nearby village of around 1500 inhabitants, started using it to cross the Vitim River. Source: http://www.reckontalk.com
Sidu River Bridge— China
China has repeatedly bested itself and others for the title of world’s tallest bridge, but the highest one yet, and the current reigning champ, is the Sidu River Bridge which hangs over 1600 nauseating feet above a canyon floor, connecting what amounts to two mountaintops.
