The Alexander Railway Bridge was opened on August 30, 1880. In the end of 19th centuryBy that time, it was the longest bridge in Europe, 1436 meters. It was also the last large bridge in Russia built from imported iron. Newspapers compared it to the Suez channel. The importance of the bridge was that it was the point of connection of the railroads from Moscow and Western Russia and the railroads of Urals and Siberia, including the Trans-Siberian Railway.
In 1918, two spans were exploded by retiring troops. After the revolution the bridge was renamed to Syzran Bridge, after a nearby city.
I cross Volga along this bridge every year and, I have to admit, every time I feel a bit scared: it's so long and thin and you see the running water below :)
Here you can find some old photographs of the Alexander Bridge: Gallery of Syzran. In 2004, the bridge was reconstructed and now it looks differently: Bridge reconstruction. And I like this photo.
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2 comments:
"In the end of 19th century, it was the longest bridge in Europe, 1436 meters."
you missed this one http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anghel_Saligny_Bridge built some 10 years later, also with imported iron :)
Thank you very much for the correction! Sorry :) Fixed.
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