The world's priciest bridges are a sight to behold, and are often spectacular feats of engineering and ingenuity.

Here, we take a look at 30 of the most expensive bridges and river crossings ever, from the iconic Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to China's new state of the art mega-bridges. All dollar amounts in US dollars.

As San Francisco started to sprawl into a major city, it became clear that a lack of quick transport services was holding back what would later become the Golden City, and so a bridge was designed. With a main span of 4,200ft (1.28km) and a total length of 8,980ft (2.7km), San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge was the longest and tallest suspension bridge in the world from its completion in 1937 until 1964.

The iconic crossing cost a total of $39 million in 1937, the equivalent of $704.9 million (£536m) nowadays, and its grand total was actually under budget. It's currently the United States' second-longest main span, after NYC's Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.

This 1,546ft (471m) beauty spans the Cooper River in South Carolina. A rarity for mega-projects such as this, the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge was completed one year ahead of schedule in 2005, at a cost of approximately $675 million, which is around $900 million (£684m) in today's money.

The George Washington Bridge links Manhattan and New Jersey, and is the world's busiest motor vehicle crossing. Before the pandemic, it carried as many as 104 million vehicles per year.

The construction of the bridge began in 1927, with the Great Depression influencing certain elements of its design. The bridge opened in 1931, with project costing around $60 million in total, or $935 million (£714m) in today’s money.

Canada's Confederation Bridge links Prince Edward Island with mainland New Brunswick, and is the longest bridge in the world that crosses ice-covered water.

Ferries had long connected the two land masses, but difficult conditions meant that building a fixed link took more than a century from the initial proposal of the Confederation Bridge to its completion. 

The crossing has boosted the economy of the island greatly since it opened in 1997 at a cost of CA$840 million, which is the equivalent of CA$1.27 billion ($971 million/£738m) in today's money.

On North America's west coast, the twin suspension Tacoma Narrows Bridge spans the Tacoma Narrows strait of Washington's Puget Sound.

The original bridge opened in July 1940, but collapsed just four months later during a windstorm due to the bridge’s elastic instability, known as aeroelastic flutter. A replacement bridge was then built in 1950 and, given its popularity, it was decided that a second, eastbound bridge should be added.

The second stretch was completed in 2007 and had a construction bill totalling $786 million, which is the equivalent of $987 million (£754m) in today’s money. 

With its central, cable-suspended stretch spanning 1.16 miles (1.87km), Russky Bridge in Vladivostok, Russia is the longest cable-stayed bridge in the world. The bridge has a total length of 1.9 miles (3.1km).

It was built as Russia prepared to host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference on Russky Island in September 2012, but has been tragically underused since then.

The record-breaking bridge is capable of carrying 50,000 vehicles a day but is only used by a few thousands cars and tourist buses as development of the island into a tourist hotspot stalled after the 2012 conference. Something of a white elephant, the bridge cost $1.1 billion (£840m) to build.

The Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge, also known as Penang Second Bridge, stretches an impressive 15 miles (24km), making it the longest bridge in Malaysia and one of the longest in southeast Asia.

The bridge connects Penang Island to the Malaysian mainland, encouraging tourism and boosting the area’s economy. Building work began in 2008 and the bridge opened in 2014; the construction cost a grand total of 4.5 billion Malaysian Ringgit, which is the equivalent of $1.1 billion (£840m) today.

China has led the world in grandiose bridge projects over the last two decades, including the Runyang Yangtze River Bridge, which opened in 2005.

The bridge complex comprises of two bridges that cross the Yangtze River near Nanjing cost 5.8 billion Yuan at the time, which is the equivalent of 8.7 billion Yuan ($1.3bn/£1bn) today.

Incheon Bridge in South Korea is one of the longest fixed-link sea crossings in the world, spanning a total of 13.2 miles (21.38km). The crossing connects Songdo International Business District with the west costal highway that leads to Incheon International Airport.

It was completed in 2009 at a cost of 1.25 trillion Korean Won, which is the equivalent of 1.5 trillion Korean Won today ($1.3bn/£1bn).

Hong Kong's Tsing Ma Bridge is one of the longest suspension bridges in the world, carrying both road and rail traffic at 4,518ft (1.38km), and connecting central Hong Kong with Hong Kong International Airport.

The multitasking crossing was completed in 1997 at a cost of HK$7.2 billion, which is the equivalent of HK$10.2 billion ($1.3bn/£1bn) today. Two decades later, experts found that miscalculations on the bridge’s height had caused billions to be lost in revenue, as taller ships were being directed through other channels unnecessarily.

At 34 miles (55km) the Bang Na Expressway in Thailand was the world's longest bridge from 2000 until 2008.

The bridge runs over land – essentially an elevated six-lane highway – and is a toll road that makes up part of the National Highway route 34. Building costs for the structure amounted to around $1 billion back in 2000, the equivalent of $1.5 billion (£1.2bn) today.

Completed in 2009 at an estimated cost of 7.7 billion yuan, the equivalent of 10.2 billion yuan ($1.5bn/£1.2bn) now, China's Jintang Bridge is around 16 miles long (26km).

The highway-suspension hybrid bridge links Jintang Island with the Chinese mainland.

Also known as the Qingdao Haiwan Bridge, the bridge over China’s Jiaozhou Bay is the longest to run entirely over water and covers a total length of 16.6 miles (27km).

The bridge connects the port city of Qingdao to Huangdao, and is estimated to have cut travel times by around half. Completed in 2011, the extra-tough structure has been built to withstand major earthquakes, intense typhoons and the impact of a 300,000-tonne vessel. It cost more than 10 billion yuan ($1.5bn/£1.2bn).

Europe's second longest working bridge, the Vasco da Gama straddles the Tagus River in Lisbon, Portugal and has a total length of 7.6 miles (12.3km).

The crossing was finished in time for the 1998 Lisbon World Exposition after traffic issues in the capital had become unbearable. But it didn't come cheap, costing a total of $1.1 billion, which is the equivalent of $1.76 billion (£1.3bn) today.

This 22-mile (35.4km) crossing spans Hangzhou Bay in Eastern China. The bridge, which has halved the journey time from Ningbo to Shanghai, was opened to the public in 2009.

The final construction bill hit $1.5 billion, the equivalent of $1.8 billion (£1.4bn) in today’s money.

This colossal bridge and causeway was constructed in the mid-1980s to connect Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. Named after the late Saudi King, the 16-mile (25km) crossing cost a total of $800 million, which is the equivalent of $1.9 billion (£1.5bn) today.

Making the most of the travel suspensions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, renovations were carried out on the bridge between March and June 2020, increasing the bridge’s capacity by 45%. Construction on a second bridge running parallel to the Causeway is expected to start as early as 2022, and is estimated to cost between $3 billion and $4 billion (£2.3bn-£3bn).

One of South Korea's most important crossings, this self-anchored suspension bridge links Yeongjong Island with the mainland and makes up part of the Incheon International Airport Expressway.

Completed in 2000, this 2.7-mile (4.42km) construction set investors back $1.4 billion, which is the equivalent of $2.1 billion (£1.6bn) today.

The new Woodrow Wilson Bridge stretches 1.4 miles (2.25km) across the Potomac River between Alexandria, Virginia, and Oxon Hill, Maryland. It opened to traffic in 2008, with major interchange work finished six years later.

The bridge took the place of the original Woodrow Wilson Bridge, which was erected in 1961 but had serious maintenance and overcrowding issues. Its construction cost a total of $2.36 billion (£1.8bn), coming in at $86 million under budget.

The 20-mile (32.5km) Donghai Bridge connects mainland Shanghai and the offshore Yangshan Deep-Water Port in Zhejiang's Shengsi County. It's notable for having a particularly narrow roadway, carrying six lanes of traffic across a width of 103 feet (31.5m).

It cost a total of 11.8 billion Yuan once it was completed in 2005, which is the equivalent of 17.6 billion Yuan ($2.7bn/£2bn) today.

The 4,260-foot (1.3km) Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge snatched the Golden Gate's crown and became the longest suspension bridge in the world on its completion in 1964, holding the title until 1981.

The New York crossing, which connects Brooklyn and Staten Island, cost $325 million to construct, which is equivalent to $2.7 billion (£2bn) today.

The bridge became one of the most expensive tolls in the US in 2019 when it started charging up to $19 (£14.45) per trip.

The new Champlain Bridge was opened to the public in June 2019, replacing the original bridge that spanned the Saint Lawrence River and Seaway in Montreal, Canada, to allow for higher volumes of traffic.

With a length of 2.1 miles (3.4km), the bridge was completed six months late and CA$235 million ($180m/£137m) over budget, bringing the final bill to a grand total of CA$4.4 billion ($3.4bn/£2.6bn). The dismantling of the old bridge is set to be complete by early 2024.

The controversial Kerch Strait Bridge got the green light following Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. The 12-mile (19.3km) link between Russia and the disputed territory was opened in May 2018 and cost a total of $3.7 billion (£2.8bn). It is currently the longest bridge in Europe.

Before the bridge was built, traffic had to travel across the Strait of Kerch by ferry or drive through Ukraine to reach Crimea from the Russian mainland. In December 2019, a section of railway was opened across the bridge without Ukraine's consent, which was condemned by the European Union as a further violation of Ukraine's territory.

At 1.46 miles (2.35km), the replacement Evergreen Point Floating Bridge is the longest and widest floating bridge in the world, measuring in at 7,710ft (2.3km) long and 116ft (35m) wide. Completed in 2016, the $4.5 billion (£3.4bn) crossing carries Washington State Route 520 across Lake Washington from Seattle to its eastern suburbs.

The original Evergreen Point Floating Bridge opened in 1963 at a cost of $24.7 million, the equivalent of $210 million (£160m) today, and lasted more than half a century before it was deemed unable to withstand high winds and the threat of earthquakes.

This sweeping Akashi Kaikyo Bridge is a suspension bridge with a total length of 2.45 miles (3.9km) and a central span that stretches 1.2 miles (1.99km).

The crossing, which links the city of Kobe on the Japanese mainland to Awaji island, was opened to the public in 1998 and cost a total of 500 billion Japanese yen, the equivalent of 512.6 billion yen ($4.96bn/£3.8bn) today.

Denmark’s Great Belt Bridge is made up of several parts – the Western Bridge (a low-level bridge), the Eastern Bridge (a suspension bridge), and the Eastern Tunnel (an undersea tunnel for trains).

The entire cost of the Great Belt project mounted up to 21.4 billion Danish krone when it opened in 1988, which is the equivalent of 39.4 trillion krone ($6.28bn/£4.8bn) today. The Great Belt Bridge connects the islands of Zealand and Funen, and in peak season is used by up to 40,000 cars a day.

Europe's largest combined road and rail crossing, Øresund Bridge connects Malmö in Sweden and Copenhagen in Denmark. In its entirety, it spans approximately 9.9 miles (16km) in total and is composed of three parts: a 4.87 mile (7.8km) bridge, an artificial island called Peberholm, and a 2.5 mile (4km) immersed tunnel.

The bridge and related essential infrastructure work was completed in 2000 at a total cost of 30 billion Danish krone, the equivalent of 41.1 billion krone ($6.5bn/£4.9bn) today.

One of the most expensive public works projects in Californian history, the replacement of the seismically unsound eastern section of the Bay Bridge had a budget of $250 million in 1995 – the equivalent of $427 million (£325m) today – which would also cover the western span replacement.

However, when work on the eastern section was finally completed 18 years later, the price had skyrocketed to an eye-watering $6.5 billion (£4.9bn). The eastern span measures in at 2.2 miles (3.5km) and hosts oven 250,000 vehicles each day.

The star of the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway, the Danyang-Kunshan Grand Bridge is the longest bridge on the planet, stretching an incredible 102.4 miles (165km). It connects Shanghai and Nanjing, Jiangsu.

The fourth longest bridge, the Langfang-Qingxian viaduct, is also part of the same rail line. The megaproject was completed in 2010 and opened to the public in 2011, with the hefty price tag of $8.5 billion (£6.46bn).

Japan's Great Seto Bridge, also known as Seto Ohashi Bridge, spans five islands in the Seto Inland Sea and stretches across a total of 8.1 miles (13.1km), making it the longest two-tier bridge in the world.

Opened in 1988, the bill for the crossing was $7 billion, which is equivalent to an eye-watering $15.4 billion (£11.7bn) in today's money.

The 34-mile (55km) Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, which was completed two years behind schedule in 2018, connects Hong Kong, Zhuhai, and Macau, and consists of three bridges, an undersea tunnel, and four artificial islands.

At 34 miles (55km), the megaproject is the world's longest sea-crossing bridge. It also takes the title of the most expensive bridge and tunnel complex ever, costing around $20 billion (£15.2bn) by the time it was completed. It’s unsurprising that the final bill was such a big sum, as an enormous 400,000 tonnes of steel went into building it – the equivalent of 60 Eiffel Towers.

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