Did you know that there are over 400 bridges in the city of Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania,USA?

If you did not know that before, now you know. 446 bridges in the city of Pittsburgh. This is very fitting for a city located on THREE(3) rivers. Yes, Pittsburgh is located on three rivers. Why else was the sports venue where the Pirates and Steelers shared for 3 decades called Three Rivers Stadium? Those three rivers are: Monongahela, Allegheny, and Ohio.

Pittsburgh is also a very hilly city. Hills and rivers comprise the geography of this city. Makes sense considering that Pittsburgh is located in the Allegheny Plateau/Allegheny Mountains. Technically it’s within the Appalachian Mountains region.

Hills and rivers. This would make for a very fragmented city, along with the gullies and creeks in the city. Makes for a beautiful city, but a fragmented city nonetheless. It is important for people, ideas, and goods to move through a city. That is how a city works. The movement of ideas, people, goods. How do you get people, ideas, and goods through a city divided by hills and rivers?

BRIDGES!! Yes, this is why Pittsburgh has so many bridges. Movement between communities would be far more difficult without bridges. Short distances separated by gullies, rivers, creeks, or low lying areas can be crossed thanks to bridges. Bridges bring people out of isolation. Think of it from a spatial perspective. Bridging the distance, making communication and travel faster.