The Eshima Ohashi bridge in Japan is so vertiginous that ships can pass underneath it.

It looks as though it should serve as a speed ramp connecting Mario Circuit with Rainbow Road, but in fact connects the cities of Matsue and Sakaiminato, spanning a mile across Lake Nakaumi.

It has a gradient of 6.1 per cent on the Shimane Prefecture side and 5.1 per cent on the Tottori Prefecture side, making it appear like the apex of a rollercoaster.

Terrifying as it might be to drive up, it's not the world tallest vehicular bridge - that accolade goes to France's Millau Viaduct, which is taller than the Eiffel Tower reaching 270m above the valley below.

As for footpaths, the Sidhue River Bridge in China stands at a palm-sweating 460m.