Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
A key moment in the prolonged efforts to build a major bridge across the Jamuna River in present-day Bangladesh took place when Shamsul Haque, a member of the Provincial Assembly from the city of Rangpur, formally introduced a legislative resolution for constructing that bridge. (At the time, this section of South Asia was a provincial... Continue Reading →
The Story Bridge in the state of Queensland in northeastern Australia made its public debut. The 2,549-foot-long structure, spanning the Brisbane River and connecting the northern suburbs of Brisbane with the city’s southern suburbs, is the longest cantilever bridge in Australia. At the time of its grand opening, the Story Bridge – measuring 79 feet... Continue Reading →
In western India, the Bandra-Worli Sea Link was first opened to traffic. Characterized by the Mumbai-based Economic Times as “India’s latest showcase to the world,” the cable-stayed bridge formally debuted with only four of its eight lanes opened. The other four lanes were opened nearly nine months later. The bridge, measuring three-and-a-half miles in length,... Continue Reading →
Elattuvalapil Sreedharan, who has played a key role in the development of public transportation in India, was born in the town of Pattambi in South India’s present-day state of Kerala. Sreedharan studied civil engineering at the Government Engineering College (now called Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University) in Kakinada, and eventually secured a position with the Indian... Continue Reading →
On Australia’s east coast, a foundation stone was laid for a new bridge that would be built across the Georges River in the vicinity of southern Sydney. The bridge, which had been long requested by area residents, was planned as a link between Sydney’s suburbs of Blakehurst and Sylvania. Approximately 2,000 people were on hand... Continue Reading →
One of New Zealand’s best-known bridges was made its official debut on the North Island. The Auckland Harbour Bridge, which was completed three weeks ahead of schedule, spans Auckland Harbour (formally called Waitematā Harbour) and connects the Auckland suburbs of Saint Marys Bay and Northcote. Lord Cobham (Charles John Lyttelton, 10th Viscount Cobham), New Zealand’s... Continue Reading →
The Australia-based Hawkesbury River Railway Bridge, carrying the Main Northern railway line over the Hawkesbury River on the northern outskirts of Sydney, was officially opened. The seven-span bridge, which would remain in use for more than a half-century before being replaced by the current bridge, was the final link in a railway network connecting Adelaide,... Continue Reading →
In Western Asia, a ceremony was held during a key phase in the construction of a series of bridges and causeways between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. The ceremony involved Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, prime minister of Bahrain, pressing a button that installed a section of box girders developed for the project. This installation,... Continue Reading →
In Indonesia, the main span of the Suramadu Bridge was connected successfully in a midnight ceremony. The bridge, which crosses the Madura Strait between the city of Surabaya on the island of Java and the town of Bangkalan on the island of Madura, had been built by the Indonesian construction companies PT Adhi Karya (Persero)... Continue Reading →
After more than three years of construction, a railway bridge in the city of Krasnoyarsk in Siberia (part of the Russian Empire at the time) was completed. The six-span Krasnoyarsk Railway Bridge, measuring 3,300 feet in length, was built to carry the Trans-Siberian Railway over the Yenisei River. Construction on the railway line, which is... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 