Curling Bridge In London

A curling bridge is a type of movable bridge, of which the sole example shown here is The Rolling Bridge, built in 2004 as part of the Grand Union Canal office & retail development project at Paddington Basin, London.

he bridge was conceived by British designer Thomas Heatherwick, designed by SKM Anthony Hunt with Packman Lucas, and built by Littlehampton Welding Ltd.

The bridge consisted of eight triangular sections hinged at the walkway level and connected above by two part links that could be collapsed toward the deck by hydraulic pistons, which were concealed in vertical posts in the bridge parapets. When extended, it resembled a conventional steel and timber footbridge, and was 12 metres long. However, to allow the passage of boats, the bridge could be made to curl up until its two ends touched, to form an octagonal shape measuring one half of the waterway’s width at that point.When operational, the Rolling Bridge was curled up every Friday at noon.

The bridge was removed in Summer 2008, and it is not know whether it will be re-installed. Although no official explanation has been given, locals in the area believed it had suffered from vandalism, and was too expensive to repair and maintain.

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Pulau Langkawi's Suspended Bridge (Malaysia)

This sky bridge spans around the gorge on Pulau Langkawi, which is the largest island in the Langkawi archipelago, Malaysia. It's suspended at 687 m above sea level, offering magnificent views of the Andaman Sea and Thailand's Tarutao Island. The view from the bridge is really breathtaking – its curves provide different perspectives of the landscapes. The Sky Bridge is one of the most spectacular bridges in the world that delivers quite a pump of adrenaline. This unique cable-stayed bridge is suspended by only one support column. This 95-yard column is held up by 8 load-balancing cables. The curved pedestrian bridge spans 125 m across a spectacular chasm. The bridge is 136 yards long and 2 yards wide. The 1.8 m-wide Sky Bridge had two 3.6 m-wide triangular platforms that provided a spectacular viewing area for visitors. And remember when in the front of the bridge, you are standing 687 m above sea level. (Link)

The Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge (Ireland)

Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge is a rope suspension bridge near Ballintoy, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The bridge links the mainland to the tiny Carrick Island. The site is owned and maintained by the National Trust, spans twenty metres and is thirty metres above the rocks below. Today the bridge is mainly a tourist attraction, with 247,000 visitors in 2009. When it's windy, this is truly an exhilarating experience – terrifying (if you're afraid of heights) but exhilarating.(Link | Via)

Vitim River Bridge (Siberia)

This broad river is the Vitim River in Siberia, Russia. The bridge that's provided to get you across is made of wood and not in a very good condition. It's only wide enough for one car but it's 570 meter (1870 feet) so it takes good 3 minutes to drive across it if you're a skilled driver. If you're not so skilled, you could be looking at a 15 meters drop into the Vitim River, which ain't no fun. And that's really nothing. Vitim River Bridge is in Russian Siberia. For those who don't know this region, it gets brutally cold there most of the year with temperatures way below Northern Ontario and everything covered in snow and ice. This bridge turns into an icicle with no traction yet locals drive up and down this bridge as it's often their only way across Vitim River.(Link)