The longest suspension bridge in the world now spans the Dardanelles Strait in Turkey. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan put the mega structure into operation.
Istanbul – 4.6 kilometers long and a mean span of 2023 meters. The “Canakkale Bridge 1915” in Turkey is the longest suspension bridge in the world after its completion on Friday (March 18). It towers over the Dardanelles Strait south of Istanbul. The building was officially opened by none other than President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The name of the “Canakkale Bridge 1915” is intended to commemorate the victory of the Ottoman Empire over the Allies at the Battle of Gallipoli. It was therefore inaugurated on the 107th anniversary of the event. It was the day when the Turkish nation changed the course of its history, Erdogan said. The bridge will now “keep alive the memory of the Canakkale martyrs”. On the day Turkey showed “patriotism, sacrifice and courage”.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his mega projects
With its record-breaking dimensions, the “Canakkale Bridge 1915” replaces the world’s longest suspension bridge, the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge in Japan. The bridge in Turkey has a height of 318 meters, which also makes it the second tallest bridge in the world. . The 2.5 billion euro structure spans the Dardanelles straits between Europe and Asia – one of the busiest waterways in the world. It is only 1.2 kilometers wide at its narrowest point, but so far it could only be crossed by ferry.
The construction of the bridge is the showpiece of a whole series of highly ambitious construction and infrastructure projects that Recep Tayyip Erdogan has initiated in recent years and which are intended to promote Turkey’s economic development. In addition to the suspension bridge, the Turkish head of state is having a tunnel drilled under the Bosporus, a third bridge built in Istanbul itself and a huge airport. In June, Erdogan launched his most ambitious and ecologically controversial mammoth project to date – the construction of the 45-kilometer “Istanbul Canal” that will run parallel to the Bosphorus. (dil/dpa)
