Top 10 longest bridges in Africa
Bridges play a crucial role in connecting people and places, and in Africa, they tell stories of innovation and progress. From the 6th October Bridge in Egypt to the Maputo-Katembe Bridge in Mozambique, these structures are not just pathways over water; they bridge communities, enhance trade, and make travel easier for millions.
Here are the top 10 longest bridges in Africa.
1. 6th October bridge
The longest bridge in Africa is Egypt’s 6th October, located in Cairo, built along the River Nile and measuring 20.5 km. The bride was completed in 1996, with construction by the Egyptian company Arab Contractors taking 27 years.
The bridge, which is used to access the Cairo International Airport from the city, also forms an elevated highway and crosses the Nile twice from the west bank suburbs, east through Gezira Island to Downtown Cairo.
2. Third Mainland Bridge
The second largest bridge in Africa is the Third Mainland Bridge, located in Lagos, Nigeria. It was in the number one spot in Africa until the 6th October Bridge was launched in 1996.
The Third Mainland Bridge was built in the late 1970s by Julius Berger and PGH Venture, which completed the project in multiple phases and opened it to the public in 1990.
The third mainland bridge connects Oworonshoki to the Apapa-Oshodi motorway and the Lagos-Ibadan expressrway. It finishes at the Adeniji Adele Interchange on Lagos Island after travelling 11.8 kilometres. There is also a connector halfway over the bridge that takes you to Herbert Macaulay Way in Yaba.
3. Nairobi National Park Super Major Bridge
Nairobi National Park Super Major Bridge is a 6.58-kilometre section of the 120-kilometre Nairobi-Naivasha Standard Gauge Railway and the third-largest bridge in Africa. It was completed in 2019.
The bridge was built in Nairobi National Park, and its average height from the ground is 18 meters, ranging from around 8 meters at the park’s northern entrance to 41 meters at the park’s southern departure.
4. Suez Canal Bridge
Other names for the Suez Canal Bridge include the Al Salam Bridge, the Mubarak Peace Bridge, the Egyptian-Japanese Friendship Bridge, and the Al Salam Peace Bridge.
The 3.9-kilometre bridge is the fourth-longest in Africa, a major project in Egypt that links the continents of Asia and Africa.
Construction began in 1995 with a consortium of firms, including Nippon Steel and Kajima Corporation, and was opened for use on October 9, 2009, six years later.
5. Mozambique Island Bridge
The Mozambique Island Bridge is the only bridge on its list that spans an ocean. It crosses the Indian Ocean to connect the Island of Mozambique (the former capital of Portuguese East Africa) to the Mainland.
The bridge was constructed in 1969 after a tender by the government of Mozambique and maintained by the National Road Administration. The bridge measures 3.39 km.
6. Dona Ana Bridge
The Dona Ana Bridge was different from others because it was constructed for rail transport by the Portuguese in 1934 to connect Malawi with the coal fields of Moatize and the port of Beira.
The bridge spanning the Zambezi River in Mozambique was the longest railway bridge in Africa, with 40 spans at the time of its construction.
7. Maputo-Katembe Bridge
The Maputo-Katembe Bridge, commonly known as the Maputo Bay Bridge, measures approximately 3.04 kilometres in length and is a suspension bridge in Mozambique that connects the capital city of Maputo on the northern side and the district of Katembe on the southern bank.
The construction work on the bridge began in 2014 by the Chinese China Road and Bridge Corporation, financed by loans from the Chinese Exim Bank, and the bridge officially opened on 10 November 2018.
8. Chora Super Major Bridge
The Chora Super Major Bridge, which was completed in 2019, is the 8th largest bridge in Africa and the second longest in Kenya, and it connects the Nairobi-Naivasha Standard Gauge Railway.
9. Athi River Super Bridge
The Athi River Super Bridge is the longest bridge on the Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway and was completed in 2018. It is the sixth-longest bridge in Africa and the second-longest railway bridge, surpassing the Dona Ana Bridge at the time of its construction.
It is part of Kenya’s standard gauge railway and ranks 9th in Africa’s 10 longest bridges.
10. Armando Emilio Guebuza Bridge
The Armando Emilio Guebuza Bridge is a 52-foot-wide box-girder bridge in Mozambique that connects Sofala and Zambezia provinces. The bridge was built in the late 2000s and inaugurated on August 1, 2009, to replace ferries with road connectivity and was named after former president Armando Guebuza.
The construction of the bridge cost $72 million, took four years, and it is currently open to most vehicles with a toll; it ranks 10th in Africa’s 10 longest bridges.
