Sydney Harbour Bridge

Sydney Harbour Bridge is an international symbol for Australia. It is said that in times past and perhaps today, the bridge holds the same significance for immigrants entering the city as the Statue of Liberty on Ellis Island in New York Harbor. It says ‘I’ve arrived in a better place.’

To locals, the Sydney Harbour Bridge is known as the ‘coathanger’ or simply ‘the bridge’. When it opened in 1932 it was not only an engineering marvel, it was the tallest structure in Sydney. For many years it dominated the skyline of Sydney Harbour and was the city’s most recognizable icon. Today that honor goes to the Sydney Opera House.

However, it is still the bridge that towers over the harbour. The roadway of the bridge is about 51 meters (about 16 stories) above the water. Its highest point in the arch is 135 meters (about 44 stories) above the average water level. For the adventurous souls willing to make the bridge climb, I’ve heard that they’re rewarded with a splendid panoramic view of the harbour and surrounding city.

At 49 meters (161 feet) wide, the Harbour Bridge is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world’s widest long-span steel arch bridge. It has eight traffic lanes, two railroad lines, a pedestrian pathway and a cycleway. The bridge connects the city of Sydney at Dawes Point to the North Shore at Milsons Point and stretches 1149 meters (3,769 feet) including the approach spans.

More than 160,000 vehicles cross the bridge each day. Its design is similar to New York’s Hell Gate Bridge which connects Queens with the Bronx. Hell Gate is longer, only four railway tracks wide and is the crucial link along Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor line between Washington, DC and Boston, MA. 

The Sydney Harbour Bridge is more than 80 years old and continues to be one of the city’s most photographed landmarks. I look forward to seeing it and, who knows, if I have enough time and nerve, maybe I’ll climb it.