Bridges are awesome. Let’s get that out of the way first. They help us with transporting goods and services across rivers and help connect places that have never been connected before. We drive our cars, buses, trucks and trains over them daily. But, what if we told you that there exists a bridge for ships and boats as well. Yeah, we know it sounds silly, but humans, the awesome engineers that we are, have managed to actually build bridges of water. Water bridges, as they’re more commonly known, are truly a marvel of modern engineering. Also known as a navigable aqueduct, it is pretty much exactly what it sounds like, a bridge that carries water, across which one can navigate on a boat. The thought itself sounds unique and poetic. Serving as connectors of channels and canals, these aqueducts are amazing feats of engineering and absolutely perfect spots for quaint and surreal experiences over water.
1- Magdeburg Water Bridge, Germany
It is the longest waterway in the world and has a length of 3012ft(918m), the width of 112ft, depth of 14ft and is 2264ft over land. It was opened up in 2003 and connects the Mittelland Canal to the Elbe-Havel Canal.
2- Krabbersgat Naviduct, Netherlands
It is a naviduct waterway that features a lock and sports a long polder of 1640ft., width of 525ft and a height of 20ft. It was opened up in 2003 and its cost without taxes was summed up to be €55 million.
3- Pont du Sart Aqueduct, Belgium
The Pont du Sart Aqueduct is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Centrumkanaal (channel in western Belgium) over the crossroads between N55 and N535 road near the town of Houdeng-Goegnies. This concrete building is 498 meters (1,600 ft) long and 46 meters (150 ft) wide. Pont du Sart Aqueduct weighs 65,000 tons and is supported by 28 concrete columns, three meters (10 ft) in diameter.
4- Aqueduct Veluwemeer, Netherlands
It connects the mainland of Hardeerwijk with Flevoland, the largest artificial island in the world. It measures in at 82ft. long, 62ft. wide while being 9ft. deep and was completed back in 2002.
5- Aqueduct Ringvaart Haarlemmermeer, Netherlands
Near Roelofarendsveen (a town in the western Netherlands), the Ringvaart Channel crosses the A4 Highway by means of an aqueduct. It was built in 1961, making it the oldest aqueduct in the Netherlands. In 2006, construction was completed of two new portions: on the east side for crossing new north-bound lanes for the expanded highway; and on the west side for the new HSL-Zuid high-speed railway. The new aqueduct is 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) long.
6- Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, UK
This one is located in Wrexham County Wales and enjoys the title of being the longest and highest water bridge in Britain. It connects the Llangollen canal to the valley of the River Dee. It was completed in 1805 and sports a length of 1,000ft with a width of 11ft and a depth of 5.5ft. It is situated 126ft above the river via 53ft. support pillars and has been acknowledged as a Heritage Site.
7- Briare Aqueduct, France
The Briare Aqueduct carries the Canal latéral à la Loire over the River Loire on its journey to the River Seine in France. It replaced a river-level crossing from the canal to meet the Briare Canal that was hazardous in times of flood. Between 1896 and 2003 it was the longest navigable aqueduct in the world until the opening of the Magdeburg Water Bridge.
8- Håverud Aqueduct, Sweden
Håverud Aqueduct is regarded as one of the greatest engineering achievements of its day. In the mid-eighteen sixties, it became clear that this section of the Dalsland Canal could not be completed using a traditional lock owing to local soil conditions. As a consequence, a thirty-meter long metal chute was constructed that traversed the Dalsland Waterfall.
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