Top 5 Real Bridges

#1 Golden Gate

San Francisco, USA

This instantly recognisable American icon spans the bay separating San Francisco from Marin County. It is the seventh-largest suspension bridge in the world and cost $26 million to build. It was opened in 1937 and its roadway rises 220 feet above the harbor below. Keeping the steel safe from the corrosive sea air is enough custom-made International Orange paint to cover the White House 17 1/2 times over.

#2 Tower Bridge

London, England

This beautiful bridge which was completed in 1894 at a cost of 1 million pounds spans the River Thames in Englands capital. It is made primarily of Cornish granite and Portland stone. Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge that consists of two bridge towers tied together at the upper level by two horizontal walkways, designed to withstand the horizontal tension forces exerted by the suspended sections of the bridge on the landward sides of the towers.

#3 Sydney Harbour Bridge

Sydney, Australia

Nicknamed 'The Coathanger' because of its arch-based design the bridge took five years to complete during the Great Depression at a cost of 6.25 million Australian pounds. Constructed with more than 53,000 tons of steel, it sits 194 feet above the harbor of Australia's capital. It was opened in 1932 and it takes about 72,000 gallons of gray paint every year to keep the bridge looking sharp.

#4 Brooklyn Bridge

New York, New York

Opened in 1883 the Brooklyn Bridge is a hybrid cable-stayed/suspension bridge that connects Manhattan to Brooklyn. The towers are built of limestone, granite, and Rosendale cement. When the bridge was built the towers were built were the tallest structures in New York and it was the longest suspension bridge in the world. Even now the bridge is considered a marvel of modern engineering.

#5 Sunshine Skyway Bridge

St. Petersburg, Florida

This bridge was completed in 1987 at a cost of $244 million dollars and stretches for 4 miles making it as long as Mount Everest is high. This sturdy bridge has been designed to withstand an impact by a boat weighing in at 87,000 tons, which is twice the size of the Titanic.