5 ms·

I really don't understand all the hyperbole around this bridge. It's a suspension bridge, so the relevant bits are at the pylons, which just happen to be on eit

by pcl 1y ago

I really don't understand all the hyperbole around this bridge. It's a suspension bridge, so the relevant bits are at the pylons, which just happen to be on either side of a huge canyon. It clocks in at #14 on Wikipedia's list of longest suspension bridges, with a main span that is 603 meters shorter (2023 meters vs 1420) than the longest. More interestingly, to me at least, is the fact that 31 of the longest 50 are all in China (as are all but two of the 24 in the "under construction or planned"). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_longest_suspension_bridge_spans https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_longest_suspension_bri...

hn_throwaway_99 1y ago
> I really don't understand all the hyperbole around this bridge. It's a suspension bridge, so the relevant bits are at the pylons I understand what you're saying, but the experience is quite different for the people driving over it compared to a bridge where it isn't a 2000 foot drop.
- stavros 1y ago
  Yeah, I know it doesn't matter how high the actual bridge is, just the length and pylons, but it feels like it matters!
  - GoToRO 1y ago
    More height, stronger winds. It matters.
    - pcl 1y ago
      Is this true? Does the center of a canyon have higher wind speeds than the edges of that canyon? And what about gusts? I'd assume that boundaries are more turbulent.
- sidewndr46 1y ago
  I think the point being made is that if you followed two ridgelines that make up a valley up to a common summit you could just jam a plank in there. You've got the world's highest bridge. It's only 4 ft long, but it is technically a bridge. I'd be more interested to know how they raised individual components into place. But I presume they just started with small cables, then used those to raise larger ones into place over time.
  - hn_throwaway_99 1y ago
    I understand the point being made, and it's a valid one. My point, though, is along the lines of "engineers/tech-minded folk often miss the bigger picture". Yes, from an engineering perspective, it doesn't matter a whole lot how far the bottom of the valley floor is from the bridge (though I'm sure it matters some during construction). But the "user experience" of someone driving over the bridge is vastly different, to the point where I know specifically of some people who wouldn't be willing to drive over it, and it's not "hyperbole" to point out how high this bridge is compared to the ground below.
CarVac 1y ago
I feel like the metric needs to be "greatest distance of road from solid ground" or "greatest distance from linear interpolation between ground attachment points".
codingdave 1y ago
What hyperbole? All I'm seeing is fairly straightforward fact-based announcements. "The tallest bridge has opened - here it is." If that doesn't interest you, fine... but the reports are not hyperbole.
moralestapia 1y ago
[flagged]
bko 1y ago
The thing that stuck out to me was this: > The 2,890-metre-long structure, which took more than three years to complete, reduces travel time between the two sides of the canyon from two hours to two minutes. Pretty impressive. I feel like things in the US take a lot longer and cost a lot more. The prime example is the second avenue subway extension which has been planned since 1920. But I just searched for a few significant bridges like the Gordie Howe bridge which took about 7 years and 6.4bn Canadian (connects US and Canada). And this bridge which seems a lot more of an engineering feat took 3 years and 8 months and cost between $280 to $292 million https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Avenue_Subway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Avenue_Subway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordie_Howe_International_Bridge https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordie_Howe_International_Brid... https://www.barstoolsports.com/blog/3553875/the-new-tallest-bridge-in-the-world-opened-up-in-china-today.-it-looks-amazing-and-it-only-took-them-3-years-to-build-it-so-why-does-it-take-forever-for-things-to-be-built-here https://www.barstoolsports.com/blog/3553875/the-new-tallest-...
- FooBarBizBazz 1y ago
  Chinese civil engineers, and engineering orgs, are good because they get a lot of practice. In the West, and especially in the US, individuals and orgs don't get practice, so when they finally do get a new contract they have to stumble around for 5-10 years figuring out all the institutional knowledge that was lost. By the time they figure it out, the project is over budget, so it gets canceled, and then it's 20 years until the next half-hearted attempt. Lather rinse repeat. At root, a lot of this stems from a "managerial" mindset in which people and skills can simply be "reallocated" on a dime. They can't. You can't uproot trees all the time. You plant one and then it grows over multiple human lifetimes.
  - RajT88 1y ago
    To say nothing of the NIMBYism. To acquire the land for use, you have to fight some armies of lawyers retained by a population with a lot of disposable income. (Yes, the US for all her problems has the biggest pool of disposable income in the world)
gwbas1c 1y ago
Years ago I remember reading about an economist who stated something like, "the best way to stimulate an economy is to pay people to dig holes and then fill them in." (I wish I remember who said that.) In modern times, that translates to paying people to build roads and bridges. Why pay people to sit on their butts and eat bon-bons when you can pay them to get something of value? In more tangible terms, building infrastructure does elevate peoples' situations.
- throw-the-towel 1y ago
  That was Keynes I think
quantumcotton 1y ago
You're not a bridge Carpenter and it shows. . This project is beautiful. This is an incredible work of art. It might not be the longest, but have you ever tried to pull cable over 2,000 ft hole? Have you ever seen what it takes to actually do those columns? The work looks nice very nice design. It fits with the landscape very well. And the fact that it cost only 140 million is an incredible. For a comparison if you look up one of the bridges I did. We spent 280 million on this We spent 280 million on this I-91 Brattleboro Bridge | FIGG Bridge Group https://share.google/LKxgk1aEWh9gSIGhD https://share.google/LKxgk1aEWh9gSIGhD
- quantumcotton 1y ago
  I don't know how to edit but the original budget for the bridge was only supposed to be like 50 to 70 million. Every single day there is an RFI.
- r-johnv 1y ago
  I'm glad I clicked your link though. That I-91 bridge is beautiful.

by pcl 1y ago

hn_throwaway_99 1y ago

> I really don't understand all the hyperbole around this bridge. It's a suspension bridge, so the relevant bits are at the pylons I understand what you're saying, but the experience is quite different for the people driving over it compared to a bridge where it isn't a 2000 foot drop.

stavros 1y ago
Yeah, I know it doesn't matter how high the actual bridge is, just the length and pylons, but it feels like it matters!
- GoToRO 1y ago
  More height, stronger winds. It matters.
  - pcl 1y ago
    Is this true? Does the center of a canyon have higher wind speeds than the edges of that canyon? And what about gusts? I'd assume that boundaries are more turbulent.
sidewndr46 1y ago
I think the point being made is that if you followed two ridgelines that make up a valley up to a common summit you could just jam a plank in there. You've got the world's highest bridge. It's only 4 ft long, but it is technically a bridge. I'd be more interested to know how they raised individual components into place. But I presume they just started with small cables, then used those to raise larger ones into place over time.
- hn_throwaway_99 1y ago
  I understand the point being made, and it's a valid one. My point, though, is along the lines of "engineers/tech-minded folk often miss the bigger picture". Yes, from an engineering perspective, it doesn't matter a whole lot how far the bottom of the valley floor is from the bridge (though I'm sure it matters some during construction). But the "user experience" of someone driving over the bridge is vastly different, to the point where I know specifically of some people who wouldn't be willing to drive over it, and it's not "hyperbole" to point out how high this bridge is compared to the ground below.

CarVac 1y ago

I feel like the metric needs to be "greatest distance of road from solid ground" or "greatest distance from linear interpolation between ground attachment points".

codingdave 1y ago

What hyperbole? All I'm seeing is fairly straightforward fact-based announcements. "The tallest bridge has opened - here it is." If that doesn't interest you, fine... but the reports are not hyperbole.

moralestapia 1y ago

[flagged]

bko 1y ago

The thing that stuck out to me was this: > The 2,890-metre-long structure, which took more than three years to complete, reduces travel time between the two sides of the canyon from two hours to two minutes. Pretty impressive. I feel like things in the US take a lot longer and cost a lot more. The prime example is the second avenue subway extension which has been planned since 1920. But I just searched for a few significant bridges like the Gordie Howe bridge which took about 7 years and 6.4bn Canadian (connects US and Canada). And this bridge which seems a lot more of an engineering feat took 3 years and 8 months and cost between $280 to $292 million https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Avenue_Subway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Avenue_Subway https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordie_Howe_International_Bridge https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordie_Howe_International_Brid... https://www.barstoolsports.com/blog/3553875/the-new-tallest-bridge-in-the-world-opened-up-in-china-today.-it-looks-amazing-and-it-only-took-them-3-years-to-build-it-so-why-does-it-take-forever-for-things-to-be-built-here https://www.barstoolsports.com/blog/3553875/the-new-tallest-...

FooBarBizBazz 1y ago
Chinese civil engineers, and engineering orgs, are good because they get a lot of practice. In the West, and especially in the US, individuals and orgs don't get practice, so when they finally do get a new contract they have to stumble around for 5-10 years figuring out all the institutional knowledge that was lost. By the time they figure it out, the project is over budget, so it gets canceled, and then it's 20 years until the next half-hearted attempt. Lather rinse repeat. At root, a lot of this stems from a "managerial" mindset in which people and skills can simply be "reallocated" on a dime. They can't. You can't uproot trees all the time. You plant one and then it grows over multiple human lifetimes.
- RajT88 1y ago
  To say nothing of the NIMBYism. To acquire the land for use, you have to fight some armies of lawyers retained by a population with a lot of disposable income. (Yes, the US for all her problems has the biggest pool of disposable income in the world)

gwbas1c 1y ago

Years ago I remember reading about an economist who stated something like, "the best way to stimulate an economy is to pay people to dig holes and then fill them in." (I wish I remember who said that.) In modern times, that translates to paying people to build roads and bridges. Why pay people to sit on their butts and eat bon-bons when you can pay them to get something of value? In more tangible terms, building infrastructure does elevate peoples' situations.

throw-the-towel 1y ago
That was Keynes I think

quantumcotton 1y ago

You're not a bridge Carpenter and it shows. . This project is beautiful. This is an incredible work of art. It might not be the longest, but have you ever tried to pull cable over 2,000 ft hole? Have you ever seen what it takes to actually do those columns? The work looks nice very nice design. It fits with the landscape very well. And the fact that it cost only 140 million is an incredible. For a comparison if you look up one of the bridges I did. We spent 280 million on this We spent 280 million on this I-91 Brattleboro Bridge | FIGG Bridge Group https://share.google/LKxgk1aEWh9gSIGhD https://share.google/LKxgk1aEWh9gSIGhD

quantumcotton 1y ago
I don't know how to edit but the original budget for the bridge was only supposed to be like 50 to 70 million. Every single day there is an RFI.
r-johnv 1y ago
I'm glad I clicked your link though. That I-91 bridge is beautiful.