INFRASTRUCTURE. The longest pedestrian bridge in the world, located in Portugal, opens this Monday, May 3 to tourists. It exceeds the record set in 2017 by the Charles Kuonen footbridge in the Swiss Alps.
It's a world record. At 516 meters long, the world's longest pedestrian bridge spans the Paiva River in Portugal. In the north of the country, 175 meters above the mainland, this infrastructure was opened on April 29.
"Even if the construction of the bridge has been completed for a while, this inauguration is important because it allows us to resume our tourist activity," assured AFPTV the mayor of Arouca, Margarida Belem, welcoming the opening of 'a "fundamental attraction" for the region.
The bridge connects two granite escarps located in the municipality of Arouca. It is made up of 127 wire shelves with metal railings 1.20 meters wide, connected by steel cables to the "V" shaped pillars erected on each side. This part of the banks of the Paiva river already had an eight-kilometer course of wooden footbridges that meander to the bottom of the valley.
The locals were able to preview the bridge, named "516 Arouca", in reference to its record length. "I live here and when I first heard about this bridge project, I didn't really believe it. But today I'm very proud to be there," said resident Marcio Soares. , by qualifying this moment as a "unique experience".
"I strongly advise you to come even if like me you have vertigo, I must admit that I did not suffer from it at all", rejoiced another resident, Rui Brandao. The official opening took place on May 2, and the bridge has been open to tourists since today.
Source: batiactu.com