Posted at 3:09 pm by Thad Roan
Our thanks to metropol2 on Flickr for sharing this awesome photo of the Shimotsui-Seto Bridge spanning the Seto Inland Sea in Japan. (To see a larger version of this photo on Flickr, please click here.)
The following information on the Shimotsui-Seto Bridge is from Wikipedia:
The Shimotsui-Seto Bridge (下津井瀬戸大橋, Shimotsui Seto Ō-hashi?) is a suspension bridge, completed in 1988, with a center span of 940 meters which connects Honshu with the island of Hitsuishijima. It is the 22nd largest suspension bridge in the world. The span carries roadway and Japan Railway rail lines. It is the northernmost bridge of the Seto-Shuo Expressway and with the other 5 bridges along this route are collectively known as the Seto-Ohashi Bridges.
The Great Seto Bridge (瀬戸大橋, Seto Ō-hashi?), or Seto-Ohashi Bridge, is a series of double deck bridges in Japan across a series of five small islands in the Seto inland sea.
Six of the eleven bridges are separately named. The other five bridges are viaducts. The six named bridges are:
* Shimotsui-Seto Bridge (下津井瀬戸大橋, Shimotsui Seto Ō-hashi?) — A suspension bridge with a center span of 940 meters which connects Honshu with the island of Hitsuishijima. The 22nd largest suspension bridge in the world.
* Hitsuishijima Bridge (櫃石島橋, Hitsuishijima-kyō?) and Iwakurojima Bridge (岩黒島橋, Iwakurojima-kyō?) — Two identical cable-stayed bridges with center spans of 420 meters.
* Yoshima Bridge (与島橋, Yoshima-kyō?) — A continuous truss bridge with five spans and a total length of 847 meters.
* Kita Bisan-Seto Bridge (北備讃瀬戸大橋, Kita Bisan Seto Ō-hashi?) and Minami Bisan-Seto Bridge (南備讃瀬戸大橋, Minami Bisan Seto Ō-hashi?) — Two suspension bridges with a common anchorage between them. With center spans of 990 and 1,118 meters respectively they rank as the 19th and 11th largest suspension bridges.
Our thanks again to metropol2 on Flickr for allowing us to feature this photo and inspiring this Bridge Blog. To see all of his photos on Flickr, please click here. To see a gorgeous Set of Bridge Photos from his gallery, please click here.