Swing bridge

Bridge that rotates horizontally around a vertical axis From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Swing bridge

A swing bridge (or swing span bridge) is a movable bridge that can be rotated horizontally around a vertical axis. It has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravity, about which the swing span (turning span) can then pivot horizontally as shown in the animated illustration to the right.

Quick Facts Ancestor, Related ...
Swing bridge
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AncestorTruss bridge, cantilever bridge
RelatedOther moving types: Bascule bridge, drawbridge, jetway, vertical-lift bridge, tilt bridge
DescendantGate-swing bridge – see Puente de la Mujer
CarriesAutomobile, truck, light rail, heavy rail
Span rangeShort
MaterialSteel
MovableYes
Design effortMedium
Falsework requiredNo
Close

In its closed position, a swing bridge carrying a road or railway over a river or canal, for example, allows traffic to cross. When a water vessel needs to pass the bridge, road traffic is stopped (usually by traffic signals and barriers), and then motors rotate the bridge horizontally about its pivot point. The typical swing bridge will rotate approximately 90 degrees, or one-quarter turn; however, a bridge which intersects the navigation channel at an oblique angle may be built to rotate only 45 degrees, or one-eighth turn, in order to clear the channel. Small swing bridges as found over narrow canals may be pivoted only at one end, opening as would a gate, but require substantial underground structure to support the pivot.

Advantages

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I Street swing Bridge span turned to allow a boat to pass Sacramento California
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BNSF Railroad Bridge 9.6 across the Columbia River in Portland, Oregon, showing the swing-span section turning.
  • As this type requires no counterweights, the complete weight is significantly reduced as compared to other moveable bridges.
  • Where the channel is wide enough for separate traffic directions on each side, the likelihood of vessel-to-vessel collisions is reduced.
  • The central support is often mounted upon a berm along the axis of the watercourse, intended to protect the bridge from watercraft collisions when it is opened. This artificial island forms an excellent construction area for building the moveable span, as the construction will not impede traffic.

Disadvantages

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An example of how small swing bridges like this one may be pivoted only at one end, but that does require substantial underground structure to support the pivot. Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town.
  • In a symmetrical bridge, the central pier forms a hazard to navigation. Asymmetrical bridges may place the pivot near one side of the channel.
  • Where a wide channel is not available, a large portion of the bridge may be over an area that would be easily spanned by other means.
  • A wide channel will be reduced by the center pivot and foundation.
  • When open, the bridge will have to maintain its own weight as a balanced double cantilever, while when closed and in use for traffic, the live loads will be distributed as in a pair of conventional truss bridges, which may require additional stiffness in some members whose loading will be alternately in compression and tension.
  • If struck from the water near the edge of the span, it may rotate enough to cause safety problems (see Big Bayou Canot rail accident).

Examples

Summarize
Perspective
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Government Bridge across the Mississippi has a swing section for river traffic traversing Lock and Dam 15

Albania

Argentina

Australia

  • Gladesville Bridge, Sydney. Opened 1881, closed 1964 and demolished; had a small swing span on the southern end.
  • Pyrmont Bridge, Sydney. Opened 1902. Closed to traffic 1988. Still in use as a pedestrian bridge.
  • Glebe Island Bridge, Sydney. Opened 1903. Tramway defunct. Closed to traffic, 1995; supplanted by Anzac Bridge. Still in existence.
  • Hay Bridge, Hay, New South Wales. Opened 1873, demolished 1973. Replaced by a fixed concrete bridge.
  • Victoria Bridge, Townsville, Queensland. Opened 1889, closed to traffic 1975. Still in use as a foot bridge.
  • Sale Swing Bridge, Sale, Victoria. Opened 1883. Closed to traffic in 2002. Restored to full working order in 2006.
  • Dunalley Bridge, Dunalley, Tasmania. Still in use.

Belgium

  • Verbindingsbrug, Zeebrugge. Opened in May 2022. With a length of 130 metres and a passage width of 55 metres, it is the longest swing bridge in Europe.[1]

Belize

  • Belize City Swing Bridge, Belize City, Belize. Oldest such bridge in Central America and one of the few manually operated swing bridge in world still in operation. (Restored in the 2000s)

Canada

More information Bridge Name, Waterway ...
Bridge Name Waterway Co-ordinates Status Comments
Cambie Street Bridge Connaught Bridge False Creek, Vancouver, British Columbia 49°16′19″N 123°6′54″W Demolished/replaced (1985), formerly vehicle, pedestrian & streetcar traffic Short documentary "Swingspan" tells the history of the bridge and its demolition.
Canso Canal Bridge Canso Canal, Nova Scotia 45°38′50″N 61°24′45″W Still swings, Vehicle/Rail Traffic Links Nova Scotia mainland with Cape Breton Island with 2 traffic lanes of Highway 104 (the Trans-Canada Highway) as well as a single track railway line operated by the Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway (CBNS).
CNR Bridge Fraser River, British Columbia 49°11′50″N 122°55′24″W Still swings, Rail Traffic Between Queensborough in New Westminster, British Columbia and the mainland
Derwent Way Bridge Fraser River, British Columbia 49°11′09″N 122°55′55″W Still swings, Vehicle/Rail Traffic Between Queensborough in New Westminster, British Columbia and Annacis Island in Delta, British Columbia
Fredericton Railway Bridge Fredericton, New Brunswick 45°57′25″N 66°37′43″W No longer swings, pedestrian traffic. Constructed in 1887 and opened 1889. Last train on the bridge was in 1996.
Grand Narrows Bridge Barra Strait, Bras d'Or Lake, Nova Scotia 45°57′35.75″N 60°48′1.03″W Was last opened for marine traffic on December 30, 2014 remaining open for marine traffic since that date, no longer swings, Rail Traffic cannot cross. Carrying the Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway (CBNS).
Hog's Back Bridge Rideau Canal, Ottawa, Ontario 45°22′11″N 75°41′54″W Still swings, Vehicle Traffic This bridge swings from one end. There is an adjacent fixed bridge over Hog's Back Falls
Iron Bridge Third Welland Canal, Thorold, Ontario 43°08′15″N 79°10′38″W No longer swings, Rail Traffic Carrying the CNR Grimsby Subdivision over the third Welland Canal.
Kaministiquia River Swing Bridge Kaministiquia River, Thunder Bay, Ontario 48°21′31″N 89°17′15″W No longer swings. Road and rail traffic only. Currently closed due to 29 October 2013 fire[2] Built in 1908 by Grand Trunk Railway; currently owned by the CNR
Little Current Swing Bridge North Channel, Little Current, Ontario 45°58′48″N 81°54′50″W Still swings, Vehicle Traffic (formerly rail) Built by Algoma Eastern Railway, 1913
Montrose Swing Bridge Welland River, Niagara Falls, Ontario 43°02′45″N 79°07′11″W No longer swings, Rail Traffic Formerly Canada Southern Railway, now CPR
Moray Bridge Middle Arm of the Fraser River, Richmond, British Columbia 49°11′30″N 123°08′13″W Still swings; Eastbound Vehicle Traffic Connects Sea Island, Richmond, BC (location of Vancouver International Airport) to Lulu Island, Richmond, BC
New Westminster Bridge Fraser River, British Columbia 49°12′29″N 122°53′38″W Still swings, Rail Traffic, formerly had 2nd deck for vehicles Between New Westminster and Surrey.
Pitt River Bridge Pitt River, British Columbia 49°14′52″N 122°43′44″W No longer swings, Vehicle Traffic Twin side-by-side bridges connecting Port Coquitlam, British Columbia to Pitt Meadows, British Columbia
Pitt River Railway Bridge Pitt River, British Columbia 49°14′42″N 122°44′01″W Still swings – Rail Traffic (Please Contribute)
Wasauksing (Rose Point) Swing Bridge South Channel, Georgian Bay, near Parry Sound, Ontario 45°18′54″N 80°2′40″W Still swings, Vehicle Traffic (formerly rail) Links Wasauksing First Nation (Parry Island) to the mainland at Rose Point
Welland Canal, Bridge 15 Welland Recreational Waterway, Welland, Ontario 42°58′37″N 79°15′21″W No longer swings, Rail Traffic Built by Canada Southern Railway, c.1910. Now operated by Trillium Railway
Welland Canal, Bridge 20 Approach Span 2nd and 3rd Welland Canal, Port Colborne, Ontario 42°53′14″N 79°14′58″W No longer swings, Abandoned (formerly rail) Abandoned 1998 when adjacent Vertical-lift bridge was dismantled.
Bergen Cut-off Bridge Red River, Winnipeg, Manitoba 49°56′49″N 97°5′53″W Centre span permanently in open position, allowing unrestricted river traffic Decommissioned CPR railway bridge (last used in 1946)
Superstructure built by Dominion Bridge Co. 1913–1914
Pont CN-Du port Lachine Canal, Montreal, Quebec 45°29′24.9″N 73°33′26.1″W No longer swings. Abandoned CN railway swing bridge in the middle of Lachine Canal. Constructed in 1912 by the Dominion Bridge Company for the Grand Trunk Railway company.[3] The pivot system and the cockpit are still in place, but the bridge has not been operational since the late 1960s.[4]
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China

  • Jintang Bridge (Tianjin) [zh], across Hai River in Tianjin

Denmark

  • Lille Langebro Pedestrian double swing bridge crossing the inner harbour at Copenhagen.[5]
  • Naestved Svingbro, Horizontal clearance 42.0m. Carries a 14m-wide trunk road over the Naestved Canal.[6]

Egypt

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El Ferdan Railway Bridge in Egypt; the longest swing bridge in the world, runs from the east of the Suez Canal to the west into Sinai. It is left open most of the time to allow sailing ships to pass in the canal, only closing during the passage of trains.

Estonia

  • The Admiral Bridge (Admiralisild) is a pedestrian bridge in Tallinn, Estonia, connecting two parts of the Old City Harbour. It allows access to the Admiralty Pool (Admiraliteedi bassein) for yachts. It became the first swing bridge in Estonia in 2021.

France

  • Le pont tournant rue Dieu, across the Canal Saint-Martin in Paris, is a distinctive location in the 1938 film Hôtel du Nord, and is featured in the opening shot of the film.

Germany

India

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Poira-Corjuem Bridge, Goa

Ireland

Italy

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The Ponte Girevole San Francesco di Paola in Taranto
  • Ponte Girevole, Taranto (built in 1958, after an 1887 one of similar design but using different materials) – a very unusual type, with two spans that separate at the bridge's center and pivot sideways from the bridge's outer ends.[7][8]

Latvia

  • Kalpaka Tilts, Liepāja, connecting the city with the former Russian/Soviet port Karosta.

Lithuania

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Chain Bridge, Klaipeda
  • Chain Bridge, Klaipeda. Built in 1855 and still working today, this is the only swing bridge in Lithuania. When the bridge is turned, boats and yachts can enter the Castle port. Rotation of the bridge is manual; two people can rotate the bridge.

The Netherlands

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The "Abtswoudsebrug", a swing bridge for bikers and pedestrians built in 1979

Many inner cities have swing bridges, since these require less street space than other types of bridges.

New Zealand

(A "swing bridge" in New Zealand refers to a flexible walking track bridge which "swings" as you walk across.)[11]

Panama

Poland

  • A swing bridge at the Giżycko is one of four bridges that cross over the Luczanski Channel. It is one of ten (four still in operation) swing bridges in Poland.
  • A swing bridge in Ustka, which crosses the Słupia River, and is walkable every 20 minutes.

South Africa

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The Clocktower Bridge, in Cape Town, starting to close behind a small boat
  • The Clocktower Bridge is a pedestrian swing bridge at the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town.

Taiwan

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Great Harbor Bridge in Kaohsiung during its rotation

Ukraine

United Kingdom

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Traffic crossing the Northwich Road swing bridge on the Manchester Ship Canal at Stockton Heath, Warrington
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Hull Docks branch bridge

In the UK, there is a legal definition in current statute as to what is, or is not a 'swing bridge'[14]

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Cross Keys Bridge in Sutton Bridge which carries the A17 over the River Nene in Lincolnshire close to the border with Norfolk.

United States

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The former Chincoteague Channel Swing Bridge in Chincoteague, Virginia, now demolished.

The largest double swing-span bridge in the United States is the 3,250 feet (990 m) long, 450 feet (140 m) navigable span, 60 feet (18 m) clearance George P. Coleman Memorial Bridge.[17]

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A swing bridge near Belle Glade, Florida
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The swing span of the double-deck I Street Bridge, in Sacramento, open for a ship.

Omaha NE Turn Style Bridge is now a historical landmark. Located 86H674H5+98 Used for rail transport. Connecting Council Bluffs, Iowa to downtown Omaha, Nebraska

Uruguay

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Carmelo Bridge, Uruguay, during its inauguration in 1912.
  • Carmelo Bridge. Built in 1912 in Carmelo, it is the oldest swing bridge in all of Latin America.
  • Barra del Santa Lucia Bridge. Built in 1925 as a railway bridge, today is used only by pedestrians.

Vietnam

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Han River Bridge in the open position
  • Han River Bridge in downtown Da Nang was designed and built by Vietnamese engineers and workers, and opened on 29 March 2000. Featuring a symmetrical cable-stayed steel swing span with a total length of 122.7m rotating on a rim-bearing circular central pier, it is the only swing bridge operating in Vietnam as of 2025.[42]

See also

References

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