516 Arouca Footbridge

516 Arouca Footbridge
Ponte 516 Arouca
Arouca, Aveiro, Portugal
(574) feet high / (175) meters high
1,693 foot span / 516 meter span
2020

Image by Andrea Fonso.

Located across the spectacular canyon of Portugal's Paiva River, the 516 Arouca Footbridge was the world's longest pedestrian bridge span with a tower to tower length of 516 meters. Later in 2020 the Baglung Parbat Footbridge in Nepal surpassed it with a span of 567 meters. The giant suspension bridge is supported by two V-shaped concrete towers that are 35.5 meters tall and 32 meters wide. The 1.2 meter wide walkway is approximately 175 meters high.

The unique design combines elements of a pure Tibet-style footbridge with no towers and a sagging deck with a more conventional tower supported span with a flat deck. The V-shaped angling of the suspender cables may have been inspired by China's Zhangjiajie Glass Footbridge.

The 516 Arouca Footbridge connects the banks of the Paiva River in the vicinity of Cascata das Agueiras and the Throat do Paiva. A number of boardwalk steps descend to the bottom of the canyon. The project was co-financed by the ERDF PROVERE programme (European Regional Development Fund) - North 2020.

World's 25 Longest Footbridge Spans

1. Baglung Parbat, Nepal - 567 meters

2. 516 Arouca, Portugal - 516 meters

3. Wanjiazhai Dam, China - 500 meters

4. Charles Kunonen, Switzerland – 494 meters

5. Kushma Bungy, Nepal - (490) meters

6. Rappbode Dam, Germany - 458 meters

7. Daqingshan Glass Footbridge, China - 450 meters

8. Hongyagu Glass, China - 445 meters

9. Sochi Skybridge, Russia – 439 meters

10. Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon Glass, China – 430 meters

11. Tianyundu Glass Footbridge, China - (420) meters