May 13, 2022
In the part of the Králický Snĕžník Mountains within the Czech Republic, a suspension footbridge in Dolní Morava — a municipality along the country’s border with Poland — was formally opened. This 2,365-foot (721-meter)-long structure is 312 feet (95 meters) off the ground. The footbridge spans the valley of the Mlýnský Stream in that region of the Králický Mountains and serves as a link between the ridges of Slamník Mountain and Chlum Mountain. This structure’s name higlights its length in meters. At the time of its Friday morning debut, Sky Bridge 721 became the world’s longest suspension footbridge.
Radio Prague International, the Czech Republic’s official worldwide broadcasting station, provided further details about Sky Bridge 721 on the day of its opening. “On some days, when the mountain mist lies low, you almost feel as if you’re walking above the clouds, surrounded only by forested mountain peaks,” stated an article on Radio Prague International’s website. “The Skybridge is part of the Dolní Morava Mountain Resort, a popular destination for skiers and nature lovers which also houses the Czech Republic’s longest mountain bobsleigh track as well as the biggest mammoth model in the world.”
Tomáŝ Drápal, the Dolní Morava Moutain Resort’s marketing director, took time during an interview with Czech Radio to describe the challenges involved in constructing Sky Bridge 721. “There were dozens of security measures and technical anomalies that had to be taken into account when setting up the bridge,” he recounted. “We had to install the pylons deep into the hardest mountain rock.”
Drápal further noted, “Acquiring the cables that suspend the bridge was also a challenge. No one makes ropes that long here. We had to import them from Italy and this was during the coronavirus pandemic, so it meant dealing with all sorts of legal and logistical barriers.”
Prior to the opening of Sky Bridge 721, the longest pedestrian suspension bridge had been the 1,693-foot (516-meter)-long Arouca 516 in Portugal. This record was held by Sky Bridge 721 only until June 2024, when the 2,372-foot (723-meter)-long Bridge of National Unity in Hungary was inaugurated.
Photo Credit: Tomas.drapel (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en)
For more information on Sky Bridge 721, please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky_Bridge_721
A February 2023 video of this footbridge can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2H2TBSkoV8
Transportation History 
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