Real giants. 10 longest bridges in the world

Initially, the appearance of bridges was an exceptional necessity. As a rule, bridges and viaducts are necessary to cross rivers, lakes and other obstacles. Their purpose is to help a person to pass from one point to another in the shortest possible time without risking life and health.

Nowadays bridges are not only functional. With the advent of new technologies, construction materials and human capabilities, bridge structures compete with each other in length, non-standard appearance and record-breaking construction time.

Danya Kunshan Viaduct

Where: China, Jiangsu Province

Length: 164.8 km

Opening: 2011

China never ceases to amaze with its thinking and drive to achieve all human benefits. In 2008, the construction of a huge viaduct, which became part of the Beijing-Shanghai railroad, began on a grandiose scale.

The viaduct looks like a bridge, erected from stone, concrete and other materials. It is necessary for crossing the road with a gully, ravine, mountain.

To date, this viaduct is the longest bridge in the world and is listed in the Guinness Book of Records.

The construction of the Danya-Kunshan Viaduct was completed in two years, and its length is almost 165 kilometers. To this day, it is the longest sea bridge in the world.

Zhonghua-Gaohsiung Viaduct

Where: Taiwan Island, between Zhanghua and Kaohsiung.

Length: 157.3 kilometers

Opening: 2004

The second longest viaduct in the world is located between the Chinese cities of Zhanghua and Kaohsiung. This railroad structure is part of a high-speed railroad.

Curiously enough, the viaduct was built as an addition to the regular railroad, so its stations are located a little further away from the railway stations. And in order to ease the way for passengers, the management decided to launch additional buses that go to the distant stations.
By the way, the need to build a viaduct is quite understandable. In this area of Taiwan there is a high probability of earthquakes. Therefore, the construction was specially created using technologies capable of resisting natural disasters.

Tianjin Viaduct

Where: China, Langfang Municipal District, Tianjin and Qingxian Municipal County.

Length: 113.7 kilometers

Opening: 2011

This viaduct, like the Danya Kunshan Viaduct, is part of the high-speed railroad from Beijing to Shanghai. Since the Heihe River flows through the area where the railway line is located, the construction of the world’s longest viaduct – after Zhonghua-Gaoxiong and Danya-Kunshan – was purely functional. It is thanks to it that high-speed trains can cross the water in record time. By the way, the viaduct was built in just two years, which is another record.

Changdei Viaduct

Where: China, Beijing-Shanghai road.

Length: 105.81 kilometers

Opening: 2010

And this viaduct is part of the railroad track connecting Beijing and Shanghai. The structure is located in a beautiful mountainous region of China and stands on huge supports. By the way, since the location of the viaduct is in a seismically dangerous place, its construction is able to withstand the strongest ground vibrations.

Bridge over the Wei River

Where: China, Zhengzhou

Length: 79.73 km

Opening: 2010

One of the longest bridges in the world is located in China and connects two cities: Zhengzhou and Xi’an. At the same time, the structure crosses the Wei River twice. By the way, this bridge was built in 2008, but was opened only two years later. Such a wait was necessary for the opening of the railroad line. The construction work involved 12,000 workers and spent about 2,300,000 m³ of concrete.

Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge

Where: China, Hong Kong-Zhuhai road.

Length: 55 km

Opening: 2018

The complex of bridges and underwater tunnels is still considered the most expensive structure in the world. The bridge complex reduced the travel time from Hong Kong to Zhuhai from three hours to a record 30 minutes.

Bridges and tunnels cross the Pearl River Delta and connect the largest cities of the region: Hong Kong, Zhuhai, Macau. By the way, the bridges in the complex occupy 38 km, the main one is almost 30 km long and consists of a double three-lane roadway. It is here that the underwater tunnel with a length of almost 7 km starts its way. The tunnel is built at a depth of 48 meters, and taking into account the fact that it has to withstand the enormous pressure of water and soil masses, it is designed according to all safety standards. It is estimated that the underwater structure will operate for 120 years of continuous operation.

Bang Na Highway

Where: Thailand, Bangkok

Length: 54 km

Opening: 2000

The bridge is almost 55 kilometers long and has six lanes and is located in the heart of Thailand. The highway passes over the Bang Pa Kong River. The project was originally created to combat huge traffic jams right at the entrance to the city. In appearance, the structure sits on top of another highway. The construction work took a full five years and cost the city’s treasury $1 billion.

Jaber Bridge

Where: Kuwait, Al-Asimah, Al-Jahra.

Length: 48.5 kilometers

Opening: 2019

Jaber Bridge is one of the largest bridges in the world spanning water spaces. The bridge was designed to span two gulfs at once: Kuwait and part of the Persian Gulf. The structure is named after Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah, who was Emir of Kuwait from 1977 to 2006.

When planning the construction, even the smallest facts were taken into account. For example, in order not to disturb the population of tiger shrimp in the area, they were carefully fished out and relocated to other nearby waters.

Beijing Viaduct

Where: China, Beijing

Length: 48 km

Opening: 2010

This viaduct fully characterizes its loud name. The structure is 48 km long and is part of the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railroad. Trains traveling along this section of track cover the distance from Beijing to Shanghai in 10 minutes. At the same time they follow as if by clockwork, every five minutes.

Damba Bridge over Lake Pontchartrain

Where: USA, Louisiana

Length: 38.4 km.

Opening: 1956

The Damba Bridge consists of two large parallel roads, the longest of which is 38 and a bit kilometers long. The huge structure connects two towns, Metairie and Mandeville, both of which are on opposite shores of Lake Pontchartrain.

Before the bridge, the north and south shores of Lake Pontchartrain were connected by ferry. This was the case until the 1930s, but in order to reduce the time spent crossing, it was proposed in the early 20s to begin large-scale construction of a dam bridge. This involved creating several artificial islands in the lake, which were later connected by a chain of bridges.

Eight years passed from the moment of designing to the completion of the first bridge. It was inaugurated in 1956, and the second one – 13 years later. But it was the second object that surpassed its brother in length by 20 meters. The appearance of the bridge allowed reducing the travel time from the northern coast of Pontchartrain to New Orleans to 50 minutes.

Several accidents have occurred on the structure over its history. In 1960, a barge crashed into the bridge due to heavy fog. Fortunately, there were no casualties, but the bridge was partially destroyed. Four years later, a tugboat carrying two barges crashed into the structure again. The accident killed six bus passengers. Ten years later, another barge struck the bridge structure again. Several spans of the bridge were destroyed, causing cars passing by at that moment to fall into the water. Three people were killed and the rest were bruised.