A movable bridge is a bridge that has dynamic moving parts used to change the form of the bridge, usually to allow passage for boats. There are many types of movable bridges, and they differ in the way they transform. The most popular types would be a drawbridge or a bascule bridge (tail bridge), but you can also find a retractable bridge, a swing bridge, a tilt bridge, a vertical-lift bridge, a transporter bridge and several other types
1. Tower Bridge, London, England
Built from 1886 till 1894, this symbol of London is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, from which it takes its name. Tower Bridge is one of the most famous bridges in the world and the most famous movable bridge. The lower deck which is the bascule deck can open to an angle of 86 degrees in just 5 minutes. The two parts of the deck are counterbalanced by two bascules weighing over 1,000 tons each
Most Amazing Drawbridges In The World: Tower Bridge, London
2. Slauerhoff Bridge (the Flying Drawbridge), Leeuwarden, the Netherlands
Slauerhoff Bridge, Slauerhoffbrug or the Flying Drawbridge is a fully automated bascule bridge in which a section of the road is impressively swung in the air to allow boats to pass. The section of the road that is raised is 15 meters (49 ft) by 15 meters, and it is raised to 90 degrees!
Most Amazing Drawbridges In The World: Slauerhoffbrug (source: Bert Kaufmann via wiki)
3. Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Newcastle, England
An award winning pedestrian tilt bridge spanning the River Tyne in Newcastle. The bridge opened to the public in 2001,and is sometimes referred to as the Blinking Eye Bridge or the Winking Eye Bridge
Most Amazing Drawbridges In The World: Gateshead Millennium Bridge
4. Pont Jacques Chaban-Delmas, Bordeaux, France
A vertical-lift bridge over the Garonne River in Bordeaux. Opened in 2013, the bridge has a total length of 670 m (2,200 ft) and a longest span of 100 m (330 ft), which makes it the longest vertical-lift bridge in Europe
Most Amazing Drawbridges In The World: Pont Jacques Chaban-Delmas (source: Prométhée33)
5. Puente de la Mujer, Buenos Aires, Argentina
The Puente de la Mujer, or Woman´s Bridge, is a beautiful pedestrians bridge that opened in 2001, which according to some locals resembles a woman dancing tango. The bridge is located in Puerto Madero neighborhood, a waterfront area which is considered to be one of the city’s top attractions. The bridge is a swing bridge that part of it rotates 90 degrees in order to allow water traffic to pass
Most Amazing Drawbridges In The World: Puente de la Mujer
6. Vizcaya Bridge, Biscay, Spain
A transporter bridge that links the towns of Portugalete and Las Arenas in Biscay province. A transporter bridge is a type of movable bridge that acts like an horizontal elevator: a section of the road runs from side to side carrying cars. Built in 1893, this is the world’s oldest transporter bridge as well as a UNESCO world heritage site. The bridge is 164 meters (538 ft) long and can carry 6 cars and several dozen passengers from one side to the other in 90 seconds
Most Amazing Drawbridges In The World: Vizcaya Bridge (source: Javier Mediavilla Ezquibela)
7. The Dragon Bridge at Foryd Harbour, Rhyl, Wales
Opened in 2013, the Pont y Ddraig or The Dragon Bridge is a bascule pedestrian and bicycle bridge in Wales
8. Scale Lane footbridge, Hull, England
The Scale Lane footbridge is a beautiful swing bridge that links Scale Lane with Tower Street in the city of Hull. The bridge spans River Hull, a river that most of the bridges that span it are movable: 6 swing bridges, 4 bascule bridges and 3 lift bridges
9. Hörn Bridge, Kiel, Germany
It may not be the largest bridge in this list, but the Hörn Bridge is a rather unique type of movable bridge: a folding bridge. Built in 1997, it has a main span of 25.5 meters (84 ft) and spans the Hörn river, connecting the city center with the Gaarden quarter. The bridge folds once an hour to allow ships to pass
Most Amazing Drawbridges In The World: Hörn Bridge
10. 22 Drawbridges in Saint Petersburg, Russia
There are 22 drawbridges spanning the Neva River in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Every night during the navigation period from April to November, these 22 bridges are drawn to let ships pass in and out of the Baltic Sea into the Volga-Baltic waterway system, cutting almost completely the connection between the two parts of the city. Almost and not entirely since at every moment at least one bridge stays connected to allow passage for emergency vehicles. In the picture: the Palace Bridge, a bascule bridge in Saint Petersburg
Palace Bridge. Just one of 22 drawbridges in Saint Petersburg, Russia (source: Ansttia)
