Architecture

Asia’s most interesting bridges

Celebrating the region's great connectors

By Anshel Ma 18 April 2017

Architecture

Beipanjiang Bridge, Chinese Mainland

Length: 1.34km

Bridge type: suspension bridge

Year of completion: 2016

The highest bridge in the world sits 564 metres above Beipan River and connects Guizhou and Yunnan provinces.

Danjiang Bridge, Taiwan, China

Length: 0.92km

Bridge type: cable-stayed bridge

Year of completion: 2020

Zaha Hadid won an international competition to build this structure with a design that relies on a single mast.

Dodhara Chandani Bridge, Nepal

Length: 1.45km

Bridge type: multiple suspension bridges

Year of completion: 2005

One of the longest pedestrian bridges in the country is actually a sequence of four suspension bridges and eight pylons.

Tsing Ma Bridge, Hong Kong, China

Length: 1.38km

Bridge type: suspension bridge

Year of completion: 1997

Tsing Ma Bridge is the world’s longest suspension bridge combining rail tracks and a road. It features additional lanes on a lower level for use during strong typhoons.

Tokyo Bay Aqua-Line, Japan

Length: 4.38km

Bridge type: bridge-tunnel combination

Year of completion: 1997

An artificial island was created at the tunnel and bridge crossover point, where there is a rest area.

Bang Na Expressway, Thailand

Length: 55km

Bridge type: viaduct bridge

Year of completion: 2000

This six-lane elevated highway is the longest road bridge in the world and required 1.8 million cubic metres of concrete.

Mahatma Gandhi Setu, India

Length: 5.75km

Bridge type: girder bridge

Year of completion: 1982

One of the longest river bridges in the world, it crosses India’s holiest river, the Ganges, and carries roughly 85,000 vehicles each day.

Suramadu Bridge, Indonesia

Length: 5.4km

Bridge type: cable-stayed bridge, box girder bridge

Year of completion: 2009

Connecting Surabaya in East Java and Bangkalan on the island of Madura, this bridge is the first ever to cross the Madura Strait.

San Juanico Bridge, Philippines

Length: 2.16km

Bridge type: arch-shaped truss bridge

Year of completion: 1973

An architectural feat for its striking design, this bridge was also unscathed by the powerful Typhoon Haiyan in 2013 and remained operational during the storm.