Tag Archives: Bridge

Anping Bridge

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Anping Bridge

Sometimes you need to build a bridge as long as Anping Bridge, to get over it.

  • Anping Bridge is a particularly long bridge found across the Shijing River estuary, near the city of Quanzhou, in the Fujian Province in China.
  • ‘Anping Bridge’ is also known as ‘Wuli Bridge’ or by its literal translation ‘Five Li Bridge’, ‘five li’ being its length.
  • Anping Bridge spreads a length of 2070 metres (1.29 miles) and has a width ranging from 3 to 3.8 metres (9.8 to 12.5 feet).
  • The construction of Anping Bridge lasted 13 years, beginning in 1138 AD and finishing in 1151 AD; and the bridge connects the two towns at either end, Anhai (originally known as ‘Anping’) and Shuitou, that lay in different counties.
  • Large stone bricks and beams make up Anping Bridge, with 362 spans in the original construction, although the bridge is now shorter and has only 331 spans.
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Anping Bridge
Image courtesy of Wikemdia Commons
  • Anping Bridge is among the longest bridges built in ancient times, and prior to 1905, it was China’s longest bridge.
  • Anping Bridge once had five pavilions to provide a resting site for those crossing the bridge, however today only one exists.
  • A large amount of silt has built up around the Anping Bridge, causing the waters to become more like a wetland in some areas, and somewhat separated rather than one large body of water.
  • Due to Anping Bridge being an ancient structure, it has been listed as a protected site by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of China, since 1961.
  • Since the completion of Anping Bridge, there have been six large scale renovations or repairs on the bridge.
Bibliography:
Anping Bridge, 2015, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anping_Bridge
 Anping Bridge, China’s Longest Ancient Bridge, 2016, Amusing Planet, http://www.amusingplanet.com/2016/04/anping-bridge-chinas-longest-ancient.html
Anping Bridge in Fuzhou, 2014, Cultural China, http://arts.cultural-china.com/en/85Arts8911.html

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Brooklyn Bridge

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Brooklyn Bridge

Brooklyn Bridge was a stepping stone in the world of bridge building.

  • Brooklyn Bridge is a neo-gothic styled cable suspension and cable-stayed bridge located in the United State’s New York City, connecting the areas of Manhattan and Brooklyn.
  • Brooklyn Bridge is 25.9 metres (85 feet) in width and reaches 1.825 kilometres (1.134 miles) in length, and was initially the longest suspension bridge on earth.
  • The building of Brooklyn Bridge began in 1869, as one of the first bridges of its kind, and it is made of steel, granite, limestone and concrete, while the latter materials were primarily used for the bridge pillars.
  • John Augustus Roebling, a civil engineer who emigrated from Germany years before, designed Brooklyn Bridge, but he died before construction commenced.
  • After the death of John Roebling, his son, Washington Roebling, became the engineer for the construction of Brooklyn Bridge, however Washington became incapacitated from caisson disease, a decompression sickness that forced him to be restricted to viewing the work from his apartment window, and as a result, he directed his wife Emily to oversee much of the onsite work.
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Brooklyn Bridge
Image courtesy of keith.bellvay/Flickr
  • ‘Brooklyn Bridge’ has also been known as ‘East River Bridge’ and ‘New York and Brooklyn Bridge’ in its history.
  • The 24 May 1883 marked the official opening of Brooklyn Bridge, which was crossed by 150,300 people on the occasion, including the then US President Chester Arthur and the then New York Mayor Franklin Edson.
  • The construction of Brooklyn Bridge cost approximately US$15.5 million, which converts to almost 380 million US dollars in 2015, and major renovations began on the bridge in 2010, which are expected to be completed in 2016, in response to the deficient standard of the bridge, graded in a previous inspection.
  • Many of those who worked on Brooklyn Bridge were immigrants, with more than 24 people reaching their death throughout the construction, while some worked underwater in airtight containers and many of these workers came away with caisson disease.
  • Brooklyn Bridge reaches a height of 84.3 metres (276.5 feet) from the average East River water level that it spans, and there is approximately 41.1 metres (135 feet) between the water and the base of the bridge.
Bibliography:
Brooklyn Bridge, 2015, History, http://www.history.com/topics/brooklyn-bridge
Brooklyn Bridge, 2015, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Bridge

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Atlantic Ocean Road

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Atlantic Ocean Road

The Atlantic Ocean Road is full of twists and turns.

  • Atlantic Ocean Road is a part of the County Road 64, that passes through one of Norway’s archipelagos in the Eide and Averøy regions, in western Norway, in Europe.
  • Atlantic Ocean Road is built on a number of islands, connected by numerous bridges and the most famous and longest is the Storseisundet Bridge.
  • Atlantic Ocean Road spans a distance of 8.3 kilometres (5.1 miles) and the road includes four rest locations and numerous tourist attractions.
  • The concept of the Atlantic Ocean Road route originated in the early 1900s, originally as a railway, although this was replaced with the idea of road in 1935, but it was not until the 1980s until the project was approved.
  • The construction of Atlantic Ocean Road began on 1 August 1983, opening on 7 July 1989, although the management of the project changed hands during the process; and 12 hurricanes occurred during the building stages.
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Part of Atlantic Ocean Road
Image courtesy of Daniele Faieta/Flickr
  • Atlantic Ocean Road originally had a toll to cover some of the costs, and although the idea was received negatively, due to the expectation that it would take longer than fifteen years to pay off, however the toll had covered the costs by 1999, after only ten years, after which it was removed.
  • Atlantic Ocean Road is a popular tourist attraction and is often said to be among one of the best road trips in the world.
  • Atlantic Ocean Road consists of many dips, curves and turns, as well as many scenic views.
  • Stormy weather at Atlantic Ocean Road can make road trips dramatic, while calm weather allows for the spotting of wildlife, including whales, and other scenery.
  • ‘Atlantic Ocean Road’ is also known as ‘Atlantic Road’, as well as ‘Atlanterhavsveien’ in Norwegian.
Bibliography:
Atlantic Ocean Road, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_Ocean_Road
Atlantic Ocean Road, n.d, dangerousroads.org, http://www.dangerousroads.org/europe/norway/164-atlantic-ocean-road-norway.html
The Atlantic Road, n.d, Visit Norway, http://www.visitnorway.com/uk/where-to-go-uk/fjord-norway/kristiansund-nordmore/what-to-do-in-kristiansund-and-nordmore/tour-suggestions-in-kristiansund-and-nordmore/the-atlantic-road/

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Golden Gate Bridge

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Golden Gate Bridge

Not gold, not a gate, but a bridge.

  • Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge that is located over Golden Gate Strait between San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean in California, United States, and is  painted a colour known as ‘orange vermilion’ that has been nicknamed ‘International orange’, a colour that can be easily seen on foggy days.
  • Golden Gate Bridge was a replacement of the ferry that transported vehicles across the Golden Gate Strait for $1.
  • On average, more than 110,000 vehicles travel across the Golden Gate Bridge every day, and it has an electronic toll system that currently charges $5 to $42 depending on the vehicle.
  • The Golden Gate Bridge’s main designer was Joseph Strauss, an engineer who had designed other bridges at the time.
  • Golden Gate Bridge measures 2.7 km (1.7 miles) in length, has an above water height of 227.4 meters (746 feet), and 27.4 meters (90 feet) in width, has a clearance of 67.1 m (220 ft) for water traffic, and its main span length is 1,280 metres (4,200 feet) which was the longest span in the world for 27 years.

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Golden Gate Bridge
Image courtesy of Porbital/ Free Digital Photos
  • At the time, Golden Gate Bridge cost $35 million to build, financed in bonds, but to make the bridge now it would cost over$1.2 billion.
  • Construction of Golden Gate Bridge commenced on the 5 January, 1933 and the opening was on 27 May, 1937, with its first vehicles crossing on 28 May, 1937.
  • A net was mounted under the bridge during construction to prevent the death of workers, which it did fairly effectively, saving 19 men, out of 30, and the survivors were known as the “Halfway-to-Hell Club”.
  • Golden Gate Bridge is said to be the second most popular site in the world for suicides, with more than 1,200 people having jumped to their death, and a current average of one suicide every two weeks, although there has been no physical barrier installed to prevent suicides, even though it is been debated numerous times.
  • Golden Gate Bridge has been closed three times all in December and all due to high wind speeds of 111 to 121km/hour (69 to 75 miles/hour) in 1951, 1982 and 1983, although the bridge has been closed for short hours for maintenance and other purposes.
Bibliography: Bridge, 2012, Golden Gate Bridge, <http://goldengate.org/>
Golden Gate Bridge, 2013, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Gate_Bridge>

Tower Bridge

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Tower Bridge

Bridge of two towers.

  • The Tower Bridge is located in London, England and provides a major crossing of the River Thames.
  • The Tower Bridge is a suspension and bascule (meaning see-saw and balance) drawbridge and on average, it opens 1000 times a year, with 24 hours notice being required in writing if you wish to pass under the bridge with a vessel of 9.1 m (30 ft) or greater in height.
  • Originally the Tower Bridge was a greenish- blue colour, and at some stage it was painted brown, then in 1977 its new colour scheme became white, red and blue to celebrate Queen Elizebeth II’s Silver Jubilee Year.
  • The Tower Bridge is 244 meters (800 feet) in length, and the two towers, which are 65 meters (213 feet) high, are connected by two horizontal pedestrian walkways which were closed from 1910-1982 due to lack of use, and now house part of an ongoing exhibition about the bridge and its history and construction.
  • The motorway A100 Tower Bridge Road travels along the Tower Bridge, and on average, over 40,000 people cross the Tower Bridge daily.

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Tower Bridge
Image courtesy of Vichaya Kaitying-Angsulee/ Free Digital Photos
  • Construction on the Tower Bridge commenced in 1886, and continued for 8 years with 432 workers and only 10 fatalities, and was opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales on 30th June, 1894.
  • Over 63,500 tonnes (70,000 tons) of concrete were used for the supports, or the piers, for the towers, and over 10,000 tonnes (11,ooo tons) of steel were used to make the steel frames of the Tower Bridge.
  • At the time, the cost of the Tower Bridge construction was £1,184,000 which is now equivalent to nearly US$152 million (£100 million).
  • The Tower Bridge has used an electric and oil driven hydraulic system to raise the bascules since 1976, although it originally used two steam powered engines, with an extra one added in World War II, for backup.
  • A number of accidents and incidents have occurred in association with the Tower Bridge, which have included planes and road vehicles, and includes a near miss for a bus carrying 20 passengers, when the bascules were opening one evening in 1952.
Bibliography:
Tower Bridge, 2013, Wikipedia,  <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_Bridge>
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