List of largest suspension bridges
Encyclopedia : L : LI : LIS : List of largest suspension bridges
This list of the largest suspension bridges ranks the world's suspension bridges by the length of main span (distance between the suspension towers). The length of the main span is the most common way to rank suspension bridges. If one bridge has a longer span than another it does not mean that the bridge is the longer from shore to shore or from anchorage to anchorage. However, the size of the main span does often correlate with the height of the towers and the engineering complexity involved in designing and constructing the bridge.
Suspension bridges have the longest spans of any type of bridge. Cable-stayed bridges, the next longest are practical for spans up to around 900 meters. So the top 23 bridges on this list are also the longest 23 spans of all types of vehicular bridges. The Tatara Bridge has the largest span of any cable-stayed bridge at 890 meters. It was originally planned as a suspension bridge, but the design was changed to a cable-stayed bridge for environmental reasons.
Completed suspension bridges
This list only includes bridges that carry automobiles or trains. It does not include cable-stayed bridges, footbridges or pipeline bridges.- Note: Click on each bridge's rank to go to the bridge's official web-site. Ranks with a red asterisk (*) do not have official web-sites, or do not have English language versions and are linked instead to a reference entry.
| Rank | Name | Location | Span in metres (feet) | Completed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| [link] | Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge | Kobe-Naruto Route, Japan | 1,991 (6,529) | 1998 |
| [link] | Great Belt Bridge | Halsskov-Sprogø, Denmark | 1,624 (5,328) | 1998 |
| [link] * | Runyang Bridge | Yangtze River, China | 1,490 (4,888) | 2005 |
| [link] | Humber Bridge (The largest from 1981 until 1998.) | Barton-upon-Humber, United Kingdom | 1,410 (4,626) | 1981 |
| [link] * | Jiangyin Suspension Bridge | Yangtze River, China | 1,385 (4,543) | 1999 |
| [link] | Tsing Ma Bridge (the largest carrying road and rail traffic) | Lantau Island, Hong Kong | 1,377 (4,518) | 1997 |
| [link] | Verrazano-Narrows Bridge (The largest from 1964 until 1981) | New York City (Brooklyn–Staten Island), USA | 1,298 (4,260) | 1964 |
| [link] | Golden Gate Bridge (The largest from 1937 until 1964) | San Francisco-Marin County, CA, USA | 1,280 (4,200) | 1937 |
| [link] | Högakustenbron (High Coast Bridge) | Ångermanälven river , Sweden | 1,210 (3,970) | 1997 |
| [link] | Mackinac Bridge | Mackinaw City - St. Ignace, Michigan USA | 1,158 (3,800) | 1957 |
| [link] | Minami Bisan-Seto Bridge (Great Seto Bridge) | Kojima-Sakaide Route, Japan | 1,118 (3,609) | 1988 |
| [link] * | Fatih Sultan Mehmet (Second Bosporus Bridge) | Istanbul, Turkey | 1,090 (3,576) | 1988 |
| [link] * | Boğaziçi (First Bosporus Bridge) | Istanbul, Turkey | 1,074 (3,524) | 1973 |
| [link] | George Washington Bridge (The largest from 1931 until 1937) | Fort Lee, NJ - New York, NY, USA | 1,067 (3,500) | 1931 |
| [link] | Third Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridge | Onomichi-Imabari Route, Japan | 1,030 (3,379) | 1999 |
|
| [link] | Second Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridge | Onomichi-Imabari Route, Japan | 1,020 (3,346) | 1999 |
|
| [link] * | Ponte 25 de Abril (Tagus Bridge) | Lisbon, Portugal | 1,013 (3,323) | 1966 |
| [link] | Forth Road Bridge | Firth of Forth, United Kingdom | 1,006 (3,300) | 1964 |
|
| [link] | Kita Bisan-Seto Bridge (Great Seto Bridge) | Kojima-Sakaide Route, Japan | 990 (3,248) | 1988 |
| [link] | Severn Bridge | Bristol Channel, United Kingdom | 988 (3,240) | 1966 |
| [link] * | Yichang Bridge | Yichang (Yangtze River), China | 960 (3,150) | 2001 |
| [link] | Shimotsui-Seto Bridge (Great Seto Bridge) | Kojima-Sakaide Route, Japan | 940 (3,084) | 1988 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Xiling Bridge | Yichang (Yangtze River), China | 900 (2,952) | 1996 |
| [link] * | Humen Pearl River Bridge | Dongguan (Pearl River), Guangdong province, China | 888 (2,913) | 1997 |
| [link] | Ohnaruto Bridge | Kobe-Naruto Route, Japan | 876 (2,874) | 1985 |
| [link] | Tacoma Narrows Bridge | Tacoma, WA, USA | 853 (2,800) | 1950 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Askøy Bridge | Bergen, Norway | 850 | 1992 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] | Innoshima Bridge | Onomichi-Imabari Route, Japan | 770 | 1983 |
| [link] * | Akinada Bridge | Akinada Islands (Hiroshima Pref.), Japan | 750 | 2000 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Semipalatinsk Bridge | Semipalatinsk (Irtish river), Kazakhstan | 750 | 2000 |
| [link] | Al Zampa Memorial Bridge (New Carquinez Bridge) | Carquinez Strait, CA, USA | 728 | 2003 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Hakucho Bridge | Muroran (Hokkaido Pref.), Japan | 720 | 1998 |
| [link] * | Angostura Bridge | Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela | 712 | 1967 |
| [link] * | Kanmonkyo Bridge | Honshu-Kyushu, Japan | 712 | 1973 |
| [link] | San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge (Yerba Buena Island to anchorage) | San Francisco - Oakland, CA, USA | 704 (2,310) | 1936 |
| [link] | San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge (San Francisco to anchorage) | San Francisco - Oakland, CA, USA | 704 (2,310) | 1936 |
| [link] | Bronx Whitestone Bridge | New York, NY, USA | 701 (2,300) | 1939 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] | Stord Bridge | Stord, Norway | 677 | 2001 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Pierre Laporte Bridge | Quebec City, Canada | 668 (2,190) | 1970 |
| [link] | Delaware Memorial Bridge I | New Castle, DE - Pennsville, NJ, USA | 655 (2,150) | 1951 |
|
| [link] | Delaware Memorial Bridge II | New Castle, DE - Pennsville, NJ, USA | 655 (2,150) | 1968 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Haicang Bridge | Xiamen, Fujian Province, China | 648 | 1999 |
| [link] * | Gjemnessund Bridge | Kristiansund, Norway | 623 | 1992 |
| [link] | Walt Whitman Bridge | Philadelphia, PA USA | 610 (2,000) | 1957 |
| [link] * | Tancarville Bridge | Le Havre, France | 608 | 1959 |
|
| [link] * | New Little Belt Bridge | Little Belt, Denmark | 600 | 1970 |
| [link] | First Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridge | Onomichi-Imabari Route, Japan | 600 | 1999 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | E'gongyan Bridge | Chongqing, Sichuan Province, China (Yangtze River) | 600 | 2000 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] | Bømla Bridge | Bømlo, Norway | 577 | 2001 |
| [link] * | Rainbow Bridge | Tokyo, Japan | 570 (1,870) | 1993 |
| [link] | Ambassador Bridge (The largest from 1929 until 1931) | Detroit, MI, USA - Windsor, Ontario, Canada | 564 (1,850) | 1929 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] | Hakata-Ohshima Bridge | Onomichi-Imabari Route, Japan | 560 | 1988 |
| [link] | Throgs Neck Bridge | New York, NY, USA | 549 (1,800) | 1961 |
| [link] | Benjamin Franklin Bridge (The largest from 1926 until 1929) | Philadelphia, PA, USA | 533 (1,750) | 1926 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Skjomen Bridge | Narvik, Norway | 525 | 1972 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Kvalsund Bridge | Hammerfest, Norway | 525 | 1977 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Matadi Bridge | Matadi, Zaire | 520 | 1983 |
| [link] * | Kleve-Emmerich Bridge | Emmerich, Germany | 500 | 1965 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Dazi Bridge | Dazi, Tibet | 500 | 1984 |
| [link] * | Kwang Ahn Bridge | Pusan, South Korea | 500 | 2002 |
| [link] | Bear Mountain Bridge (The largest from 1924 until 1926) | Peekskill, NY, USA | 497 (1,632) | 1924 |
| [link] | Williamsburg Bridge (The largest from 1903 until 1924) | New York, NY, USA | 488 (1,600) | 1903 |
| [link] | W. Preston Lane Memorial Bridge I | Chesapeake Bay, MD, USA | 488 (1,600) | 1952 |
| [link] * | Newport Bridge (Sen. Claiborne Pell Bridge) | Newport, Rhode Island, RI, USA | 488 (1,600) | 1969 |
|
| [link] | W. Preston Lane Memorial Bridge II | Chesapeake Bay, MD, USA | 488 (1,600) | 1973 |
| [link] | Brooklyn Bridge (The largest from 1883 until 1903.) | New York, NY, USA | 486 (1,596) | 1883 |
| [link] * | Lions' Gate Bridge | Vancouver, Canada | 473 (1,550) | 1938 |
| [link] * | Sotra Bridge | Bergen, Norway | 468 | 1971 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Hirado Bridge | Hirado Island, Japan | 460 | 1977 |
| [link] * | Vincent Thomas Bridge | San Pedro, CA, USA | 457 (1,550) | 1963 |
| [link] | Mid-Hudson Bridge | Poughkeepsie, NY, USA | 456 (1,495) | 1930 |
| [link] * | Shantou Bay Bridge | Guangdong province, China | 452 | 1996 | |
| [link] * | Fengdu Bridge | Sichuan (Yangtze River), China | 450 | 1996 | |
| [link] | Manhattan Bridge | New York, NY, USA | 448 (1,470) | 1909 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Lysefjord Bridge | Rogaland, Norway | 446 | 1997 |
--> | [link] | Angus L. Macdonald Bridge | Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada | 441 (1,447) | 1955 |
[Linked photo]
--> | [link] | A. Murray MacKay Bridge | Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada | 427 (1,400) | 1970 |
|
| [link] | Triborough Bridge | New York, NY, USA | 421 (1,380) | 1936 |
| [link] * | Älvsborg Bridge | Gothenburg, Sweden | 417 | 1966 |
| [link] * | Thuan Phuoc Bridge | Da Nang, Vietnam (Han River) | 405 | 2005 | |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Hadong Namhae Bridge | Pusan, South Korea | 404 | 1973 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Aquitaine Bridge | Bordeaux, France | 394 | 1967 |
| [link] * | Amu Daria River Bridge | Bukhara, Uzbekistan | 390 | 1964 | |
| [link] * | Cologne Rodenkirchen Bridge | Cologne, Germany | 378 | 1954 |
| [link] | St. Johns Bridge | Portland, OR, USA | 368 (1,207) | 1931 |
| [link] * | Wakato Narrows Bridge | Kitakyushu, Japan | 367 | 1962 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Mount Hope Bridge | Mount Hope Bay, RI, USA | 366 (1,200) | 1929 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] | Ogdensburg Prescott International Bridge (Seaway Skyway) | Ogdensburg, NY, USA - Prescott, Ontario, Canada | 351 (1151) | 1960 |
|
| [link] * | Hercilio Luz Bridge | Florianopolis Island, Brazil | 340 | 1926 |
| [link] * | Bidwell Bar Bridge | Oroville, CA, USA | 338 (1,108) | 1965 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Varodd Bridge | Kristiansand, Norway | 337 | 1956 |
| [link] | Tamar Bridge | Plymouth-Saltash, United Kingdom | 335 (1,100) | 1961 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Deer Isle Bridge | Penobscot Bay, ME, USA | 329 (1,088) | 1939 |
| [link] * | Otto Beit Bridge | Chirundu Zambia/Zimbabwe | 328 | 1939 | |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Rombak Bridge | Nordland, Norway | 325 | 1964 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Simon Kenton Bridge | Maysville, KY, USA | 323 (1,060) | 1932 |
| [link] * | Île d'Orléans Bridge | Quebec City, Canada | 323 (1,059) | 1936 |
| [link] * | John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge (The largest from 1867 until 1883) | Cincinnati, OH, USA | 322 (1,057) | 1867 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Dent Bridge | Orofino, ID, USA | 320 (1,050) | 1971 |
| [link] * | Cologne Mulheim Bridge | Cologne, Germany | 315 | 1951 |
| [link] | Wheeling Suspension Bridge (The largest from 1849 until 1851) | Wheeling, WV, USA | 308 (1,010) | 1849 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Konohana Bridge | Osaka, Japan | 300 | 1987 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] * | Chavanon Viaduct | Merlines and Messeix, France (Chavanon Valley) | 300 | 2000 |
| [Linked photo] | [link] | Yeongjong Grand Bridge (the largest self-anchored suspension bridge) | Incheon, South Korea | 300 | 2000 |
| [link] * | Elizabeth Bridge | Budapest, Hungary | 290 | 1964 |
--> | [link] * | Tjeldsund Bridge | Bjerkvik, Norway | 290 | 1967 |
Bridges not yet completed
- The reconstructed eastern section of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge will be the largest self-anchored suspension bridge ever constructed. With a single tower, it will have two asymetrical spans of 180 and 385 meters. Construction is scheduled to be completed in 2012
- The Strait of Messina Bridge, with a center span of 3,300 m, is planned to connect Italy and Sicily but construction has not yet begun.
- The İzmit Bay Bridge crossing the Marmara Sea in Turkey with a span of 1,668 m.
- Two large suspension bridges are planned in China The Xihoumen Bridge, with a span of 1,650 is planned for the Zhoushan Archipelago, and the Qiongzhou Bridge (2,000 m to 2,500 m).
- The Hardanger Bridge, with a total length of 1,380 m, is to be constructed across the fjord Hardangerfjorden in Norway. Construction is estimated to be completed in 2011. [link]
- The Chacao Channel bridge connecting the island of Chiloé with mainland Chile. This unusual design has two mainspans of 1,055 m and 1,100 m without an anchorage between them. Construction begins in 2007. Opens in 2012.
See also
References
- Note: Some of the information posted on the following sites may be different from the information posted above. As of February 21, 2006, the sites were out of date or inaccurate as noted in parenthesis
- Denenberg, David, [Bridgemeister.com] (an extensive inventory of roughly 2,000 suspension bridges)
- Janberg, Nicolas, [Suspension bridges], Structurae.de (an extensive database of structures including many suspension bridges)
- Durkee, Jackson, ["World's Longest Bridge Spans"], National Steel Bridge Alliance, May 24, 1999 (out of date)
- [The World's Greatest Bridges], The Bridge over the Strait of Messina (out of date and other errors)
- [List of longest spans], Pub Quiz Help (includes bridges that have not yet been completed)
- [Steel bridges in the world, and other bridge statistics], The Swedish Institute of Steel Construction, March, 2003 (out of date)
- Virola, Eur Ing Juhani, [Two Millennia - Two Long-Span Suspension Bridges], Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, ATSE Focus No 124, November/December 2002 (revised information up to date as of 2005)
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.