03 August, 2017
Switzerland has opened the world's longest suspension footbridge. It is 494 meters long.
The bridge is suspended between 1,600 meters and 2,200 meters above sea level. It is only 65 centimeters wide and goes as high as 85 meters above the ground.
Hikers, within sight of the famed mountain, the Matterhorn, and the Bernese Alps, can cross it in about 10 minutes
The bridge crosses the deepest-cut valley in Switzerland. Hikers can look down onto it through grates in the bridge.
Without the bridge, the journey previously took up to four hours.
According to Swiss reports, it took only 10 weeks to build the bridge. And the structure surpasses Germany's "Titan-RT" as the world's longest suspension footbridge. The "Titan-RT", which opened last month, is just over 450 meters long. It crosses Germany's highest reservoir, the Rappbode Dam.
The Swiss bridge is also longer than the so-called "footbridge in the sky." This bridge, built in 2014, is part of the Sochi Sky Park in Russia. It spans 439 meters and includes observation platforms looking on the mountains and the Black Sea Coast.
I'm John Russell.
John Russell adapted this story for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor.
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Words in This Story
suspension footbridge – n. a bridge ( for people who are walking) that is hung from two or more cables and held up by towers
surpass – v. to be better or greater than (someone or something)