From China to Türkiye, some of the longest bridges in the world

Italy has just approved a US$15.5 billion project that will connect Sicily to the European continent on what is billed as "the world's longest suspension bridge." Preliminary work is already rumored to begin in late summer (in the northern hemisphere), and construction is expected to begin next year.

The project is a classic suspension bridge , 3.66 kilometers long and with a central span (distance between towers) of 3.3 kilometers. This would make it the longest suspension bridge in the world.

Here's a trip around the world over some of the longest bridges.

This country takes the top spot for "longest bridges." And the Danyang-Kunshan Bridge takes first place.

It is 164,800 meters long and has been recognized by the Guinness World Records. It is located in Jiangsu province and crosses the Changhua-Kaohsiung Viaduct.

It took four years to build, with 100,000 people participating, and was inaugurated in 2011. The high-speed train between Beijing and Shanghai passes over it.

This same train passes over another of the longest bridges, the Cangde Bridge , 115,900 meters long.

Other very long Chinese bridges are the Tianjin Bridge (113,700 meters) and the Weinan Weihe Bridge (79,732 meters), which was recognized as the longest when it opened in 2008.

Opened in 2018, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge connected Hong Kong to mainland China for the first time and became known as the world's longest sea bridge at 55,717 meters (it also has a 7 km underwater tunnel). It is designed to withstand a magnitude 8 earthquake, a super typhoon with winds of 340 kilometers per hour, and collisions with large vessels.

The Bang Na Expressway is a 54-kilometer bridge in Thailand that connects Bang Na District with Bang Pakong District in Chachoengsao Province. It opened in 2000 and was considered the longest bridge in the world until 2004.

The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is located in the United States and consists of two parallel bridges that cross Lake Pontchartrain in southern Louisiana. It connects the Metairie neighborhood of New Orleans with the town of Mandeville.

The first bridge was built in 1956; the second in 1969. The total length is 38,400 meters.

But if we delve into the specific world of suspension bridges - and which are famous for their length -, we could name the Çanakkale Bridge 1915 (also called the Dardanelles Bridge) in Turkey, the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge in Japan or the Great Belt Bridge in Denmark, as well as - again - several Chinese suspension bridges such as the Yangtze River Yangsigang and the Nansha Bridge.