Tower Bridge London, England Bascule, suspension 268 880 60 200 steel masonry 1894 Sir Horace Jones Sir John Wolfe-Barry When it opened, the Tower Bridge was raised over 1,000 times to allow ships to pass. Today, it only opens less than 100 times per year. The steel towers are covered in decorative masonry and stand 206 feet (63 m) tall. Originally the bascules (French for see-saw) were operated using steam. They are now operated by oil and electricity. Golden Gate Bridge San Francisco, California, USA Suspension 2737 8981 1280 4200 steel concrete 1937 Joseph Strauss US$27 million Over one million vehicles have crossed the Golden Gate Bridge. The bridge is painted orange vermilion, or international orange. The US Navy would have preferred black and yellow stripes for visibility. Eleven workers died during the bridge construction. A safety net installed under the bridge saved the lives of 19 workers. The survivors were considered members of the "Half-Way-to-Hell Club." Brooklyn Bridge Brooklyn-Manhattan, New York, USA Suspension 1825 5989 486 1595 steel granite 1883 John Roebling Washington Roebling US$18 million The Brooklyn Bridge is the second busiest bridge in New York City, with a traffic volume of 144,000 vehicles per day. When it was built, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. Engineer John Roebling died during construction. His son Washington took over, but became very ill and bedridden during construction. He relayed instructions to the crew through his wife Emily. With an admission cost of one cent, over 150,000 people crossed the Brooklyn Bridge on opening day. Sydney Harbour Bridge Sydney, Australia Arch 1149 3770 503 1650 steel concrete 1932 Dr. J.J.C Bradfield Ralph Freeman Sir Douglas Fox 4.5 million pounds The bridge deck is a whopping 49 meters (160 feet) wide. The eight lanes of traffic carry over 150,000 vehicles per day. Before the bridge was opened, it was test loaded using up to 96 steam locomotives placed in various configurations. There are approximately 6,000,000 rivets holding the bridge together. Iron Bridge Shropshire, England Arch 30 100 30 100 cast iron 1779 Abraham Darby III Thomas Farnolls Pritchard The first bridge in the world made entirely of cast iron. Shropshire was in the center of many iron factories, so the bridge was built with iron. Due to disrepair, the bridge was closed to vehicular traffic in 1934. On its 200th birthday so many pedestrians gathered on the bridge and caused pieces to break off. Today, only 200 pedestrians are allowed on the bridge at one time. Gladesville Bridge Sydney, Australia Arch 579 1900 305 1000 reinforced concrete 1964 J. A. L. Shaw H. M. Sherrard The bridge was the longest-spanning single concrete arch bridge when completed. - - Akashi Kaikyo Bridge Kobe and Awaji-shima, Japan Suspension 3910 12828 1990 6527 steel 1998 Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Authority Matsuo Bridge Company $4.3 billion Longest suspension bridge in the world. It's 928 foot towers are the highest in the world. The bridge is designed to handle 180 mile-per-hour winds and to withstand a 8.5 magnitude earthquake. 90,000 tons of steel was used to construct the stiffening girders. The total length of cable is 300,000 kilometers which is enough to circle the earth 7.5 times. Firth of Forth Bridge South and North Queensferry, Scotland Cantilever 2522 8276 523 1710 steel 1890 Benjamin Baker John Fowler $ 15 million It was the world's first all-steel long-span bridge and the world's longest bridge. The bridge consists of three towers supporting two cantilevers and two main spans. Some of the structural members of the bridge are as large as 12 feet in diameter. Confederation Bridge Borden-Carleton, Prince Edward Island and Cape Jourimain, New-Brunswick, Canada Concrete box girder 12900 42300 250 820 steel concrete 1997 Strait Crossing Development $730 million Longest bridge over ice covered waters in the world. There are 34 traffic signals on the bridge; they will be green under normal conditions. Although the 1.1 m concrete barriers block the motorist view, they act as a windbreak