Akashi Kaikyō Bridge

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Akashi Kaikyō Bridge

Akashi Kaikyō Ō-hashi (明石海峡大橋?)

Akashi Kaikyō Bridge from the air.

Other name(s) Pearl bridge

Carries 6 lanes of roadway

Crosses Akashi Strait[1]

Locale Awaji Island and Kobe[1]

Maintained by Honshū-Shikoku Bridge Authority

Design Suspension bridge[1]

Total length 3,911 meters (12,831 ft)

Height 282.8 metres (928 ft) (pylons)[1]

Longest span 1,991 meters (6,532 ft)[1]

Clearance below 65.72 meters

 Beginning date of 1988[1]

construction

Completion date 1998[1]

Opened April 5, 1998

Toll ¥2,300

34°36′59″N135°01′13″ECoordinates: 34°36′
Coordinates
59″N 135°01′13″E

The Akashi-Kaikyō Bridge (明石海峡大橋 Akashi Kaikyō Ō-hashi?), also known as the Pearl Bridge,
has the longest central span of any suspension bridge, at 1,991 metres (6,532 ft). It is located
in Japan and was completed in 1998[1]. The bridge links the city of Kobe on the mainland of Honshū to
Iwaya on Awaji Island by crossing the busy Akashi Strait. It carries part of the Honshū-
Shikoku Highway.

The bridge is one of the key links of the Honshū-Shikoku Bridge Project, which created three routes
across the Inland Sea.

Contents
[hide]

• 1 History

• 2 Architecture

• 3 Use

• 4 Nearby attractions
 • 5 Gallery

• 6 See also

• 7 References

• 8 External links

[edit]History

Before the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge was built, ferries carried passengers across the Akashi Strait in
Japan. This dangerous waterway often experiences severe storms, and in 1955, two ferries sank in
the strait during a storm, killing 168 children. The ensuing shock and public outrage convinced the
Japanese government to develop plans for a suspension bridge to cross the strait. The original plan
called for a mixed railway-road bridge, but when construction on the bridge began in April 1986, the
construction was restricted to road only, with six lanes. Actual construction did not begin until May
1986, and the bridge was opened for traffic on April 5, 1998. The Akashi Strait is an
international waterway that necessitated the provision of a 1,500-metre (4,921 ft)-wide shipping lane.

[edit]Architecture

The bridge has three spans. The central span is 1,991 m (6,532 ft)[1], and the two other sections are
each 960 m (3,150 ft). The bridge is 3,911 m (12,831 ft) long overall. The central span was originally
only 1,990 m (6,529 ft), but the Kobe earthquake on January 17, 1995, moved the two towers
sufficiently (only the towers had been erected at the time) so that it had to be increased by 1 m (3.3 ft).
[1]

The bridge was designed with a two-hinged stiffening girder system, allowing the structure to withstand
winds of 286 kilometres per hour (178 mph), earthquakes measuring to 8.5 on theRichter scale, and
harsh sea currents. The bridge also contains pendulums that are designed to operate at the resonance
frequency of the bridge to damp forces. The two main supporting towers rise 298 m (978 ft) above sea
level, and the bridge can expand because of heating up to 2 metres (7 ft) over the course of a day.
Each anchorage required 350,000 tonnes (340,000 LT; 390,000 ST) of concrete. The steel cables
have 300,000 kilometres (190,000 mi) of wire: each cable is 112 centimetres (44 in) in diameter and
contains 36,830 strands of wire.[2][3]

The Akashi-Kaikyo bridge has a total of 1737 illumination lights: 1084 for the main cables, 116 for the
main towers, 405 for the girders and 132 for the anchorages. On the main cables three high light
discharged tubes are mounted in the colors red, green and blue. The RGB model and computer
technology make for a variety of combinations. Currently, 28 patterns are used for occasions
as national or regional holidays, memorial days or festivities.[citation needed]
[edit]Use

The total cost is estimated at ¥500 billion, and is expected to be defrayed by charging commuters a toll
to cross the bridge. The toll is ¥2,300 and the bridge is used by approximately 23,000 cars/day.[4]

[edit]Nearby attractions
Two parks in proximity of the bridge have been built for tourists, one in Maiko (including a small
museum) and one in Asagiri. Both are accessible by the coastal train line.

[edit]Gallery

At night.
View from water level Viewed from the air.
View from a tower.

Viewed from the Ōkura Beach Akashi

Panoramic View

Akashi Kaikyō Bridge

On the roadway

[edit]See also

 Great Seto Bridge

 Honshū-Shikoku Bridge Project

 Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridge

 List of longest suspension bridges

[edit]References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Akashi Kaikyo Bridge at Structurae

2. ^ Akashi Kaikyo Bridge

3. ^ Supporting the Longest Suspension Bridge in the World

4. ^ Megastructures. National Geographic for Channel Five.

[edit]External links
 Wikimedia Commons has
media related to: Akashi
bridge

 Akashi Kaikyo Bridge at Structurae

[hide]

World's longest suspension bridge span

Preceded by Akashi Kaikyō Bridge Superseded by

Humber Bridge 1998– None
[show]

Crossings of the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway

Categories: 1998 in Japan | Bridges completed in 1998 | Suspension bridges in Japan | Visitor
attractions in Hyōgo Prefecture

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• This page was last modified on 9 October 2010 at 03:10.