Canada is a vast country that borders the United States to the north. The amazing natural landscape of the second-largest country in the world also requires engineering ingenuity.
Mountains, rivers, and valleys are obstacles to the Trans-Canada Highway. These are surpassed by some of the most amazing bridges in the world.
In this article, you’ll discover some of the most famous bridges in Canada, structures that range from incredible feats of engineering to fascinating tourist attractions.
1. Confederation Bridge
Confederation Bridge is a huge box-and-girder bridge that forms an important part of the Trans-Canada Highway. This highway passes through all the Canadian provinces and has a length of 7,476 kilometers (4,645 miles). It runs from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Atlantic Ocean in the east.
The bridge is located in the utmost eastern part of this highway and crosses the Abegweit Passage, the narrowest part of the Northumberland Straight. Completed between 1993 and 1997, it’s the longest bridge in Canada with a length of 12.9 kilometers (8 miles). It connects Prince Edward Island with the province of New Brunswick.
2. Capilano Suspension Bridge
The Capilano Suspension Bridge is an incredible suspension bridge that crosses the Capilano River in the District of North Vancouver. This area is part of the metropolitan area of Vancouver in British Columbia. The original version of the bridge was constructed in 1889 by a Scottish Engineer named George Grant Mackay.
The bridge looks nowhere near how it looked back then because it was completely rebuilt in 1956. It has a length of 140 meters (460 feet) and reaches a maximum height of 70 meters (230 feet) above the river below. The bridge and adjoining attractions have become major tourist attractions in the region.
3. Peace Bridge
Peace Bridge is the name of a pedestrian and bicycle bridge that crosses the Bow River in Calgary, Alberta. It’s one of the many famous bridges in the world that has been designed by the renowned Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. It features a double helix and tubular design.
The bridge has a total length of 130.6 meters (428 feet) and has no piers inside the water to reduce the ecological footprint to a minimum. The height of barely 5.85 meters (19.2 feet) also has a reason because this was needed to avoid problems with the nearby City/Bow River Heliport.
4. Hartland Covered Bridge
The Hartland Covered Bridge is located in the town of Hartland in New Brunswick and is another famous bridge in Canada that holds a remarkable record. It crosses the Saint John River and connects Hartland to Somerville and has done so ever since it was completed in 1901.
This remarkable historic bridge has a total length of 391 meters (1,282 feet) which makes it the longest covered bridge in the world. Although it’s hard to determine at first glance, it features 7 Howe Triss bridges that are interconnected on 6 piers. Because of its incredible historic value, it was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1980.
5. Alexandra Bridge
Alexandra Bridge is officially known as the Royal Alexandra Interprovincial Bridge and is a remarkable steel truss cantilever bridge. It crosses the Ottawa River and connects the Canadian cities of Ottawa, Ontario, and Gatineau, Quebec.
It’s another historic bridge in Canada that was constructed between 1899 and 1901. It has a total length of 563.27 meters (1,848 feet) and can carry both vehicles and pedestrians/bicycles on a specially designated pathway.
6. Quebec Bridge
Quebec Bridge is a riveted steel truss bridge that crosses the lower Saint Lawrence River. It connects the Sainte-Foy and Lévis districts of the city of Quebec. What’s remarkable about this bridge is that it was very complicated to build. The project failed twice in 1907 and 1916 and wasn’t completed until 1919, about 3 decades after construction had started.
This rail, road, and pedestrian bridge was very long at the time with a total length of 987 meters (3,238 feet). The structural features of the bridge were inspired by those of the Forth Bridge in Scotland and with a height of 46 meters (151 feet) above the water is much higher than it initially looks.
7. Humber Bay Arch Bridge
The Humber Bay Arch Bridge is an amazingly beautiful through arch bridge located just south of Lake Boulevard West in Toronto, the most populous city in Canada. It’s located in the western part f the city and provides a great view of downtown Toronto and the CN Tower.
This structure in Toronto only allows the passage of pedestrians and bicycles and was completed in 1994. It has a length of 130 meters (430 feet) and the main span of 100 meters (330 feet) is supported by an amazing arch. It’s one of the most notable stops on the so-called Martin Goodman Trail which runs for 56 kilometers (35 miles) along Toronto’s Waterfront.
8. Alex Fraser Bridge
The Alex Fraser Bridge is also sometimes referred to as the Annacis Bridge and is a huge cable-stayed bridge that spans the Fraser River. It connects the cities of Richmond and North Delta in the Vancouver Metropolitan area and has done so since it was completed in 1986.
It was the longest cable-stayed bridge in the world upon completion and kept the record of being the longest of its kind in North America until 2005. It has a total length of 2,525 meters (8,284 feet) and the longest span has a length of 465 meters (1,526 feet). It’s a very high bridge as well as the towers reach a height of 154 meters (505 feet) above the after below.
9. Ambassador Bridge
The Ambassador Bridge is one of the several amazing bridges that connect Canada and the United States. This international toll bridge spans the Detroit River and connects the Canadian city of Windsor, Ontario with the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan.
This bridge was constructed between 1927 and 1929 and has since become the busiest international border crossing in North America. The bridge has a total length of 2,300 meters (7,500 feet) and the longest span has a length of 50 meters (1,850 feet), quite an impressive bridge in Canada indeed.
10. Champlain Bridge
The Champlain Bridge is the common name of a bridge that is officially known as the Samuel De Champlain Bridge. It crosses the Saint Lawrence River and is one of the newt major bridges in Canada as it was only completed in 2019. It replaced the older steel truss cantilever Champlain Bridge that was located just next to it.
This is considered to be one of the largest transportation projects ever in North America and it cost a whopping $4.2 billion to complete. The reason for this project was to allow an estimated 59 million vehicles to cross the river in this location every year. With a length of 3,400 meters (11,155 feet) and towers that stand 170 meters (557.74 feet) tall, it’s one of Canada’s most imposing bridges as well.
