The bridge connects a half-kilometre stretch of the Europaweg hiking trail. swissrope.com

This content was published on July 29, 2017 - 16:00

See in another language: 1 Português (pt) Maior ponte pedestre do mundo foi inaugurada na Suíça

The longest pedestrian suspension bridge in the world was officially opened in Switzerland today, measuring in at just under half-a-kilometre long.



The steel bridge, which connects two sections of a walking trail between Grächen and Zermatt in the south of the country, was unveiled after a construction period of just ten weeks.



At 494 metres long, it overtakes the “Titan-RT” bridge in Germany as the world’s longest pedestrian suspension bridge. And at a narrow 65cm wide, the bridge stretches like a thin wire across the sheer valley floor.



Built by local company swissrope/Lauber Seilbahnen, the bridge completes a section of the Europaweg trail, a high-altitude walking route offering panoramas of some of Switzerland’s highest peaks, including the Dom (4,545m) and the Matterhorn.



In a press release, the Zermatt Tourism body promised “thrills above the precipice.” This might be so; but it is not for the faint-hearted. With a maximum height of 85 metres above the valley, the bridge is only “for hikers with no fear of heights,” they said.





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