Five of the ten longest cable-stayed bridges in the world have been built across the world’s third-longest river, the Yangtze, which is a crucial waterway for the economic development of China.

Road-Traffic Technology lists the top ten longest cable-stayed bridges in the world, based on their main span length.

 World’s longest cable-stayed bridges: Top ten

1. Jiaxing-Shaoxing Sea Bridge (Jiashao Bridge) – 2,680m

2. Russky Bridge – 1,104m

3. Hutong Yangtze River Bridge – 1,092m

4. Sutong Yangtze River Highway Bridge – 1,088m

5. Stonecutters Bridge – 1,018m

6. Qingshan Yangtze River Bridge – 938m

7. Edong Yangtze River Bridge – 926m

8. Jiayu Yangtze River Bridge – 920m

9. Tatara Bridge – 890m

10. Normandy Bridge – 856m

1. Jiaxing-Shaoxing Sea Bridge (Jiashao Bridge), China – 2,680m

World's longest cable-stayed bridges
Jiashao is a multi-pylon cable-stayed bridge carrying a two-way eight-lane expressway. Credit: Shangsc.

The Jiaxing-Shaoxing Sea Bridge, also known as Jiashao Bridge, is located in the Hangzhou Bay. It connects the cities of Jiaxing and Shaoxing in Zhejiang province, China.

Jiashao is a multi-pylon cable-stayed bridge, supported by six 227m pylons. It carries a two-way eight-lane expressway with six lanes dedicated to traffic. With the main span of 2,680m, the bridge runs to a total distance of 10,138m. The 55.6m-wide bridge features a steel box girder structure with a pillar, six towers and four cable faces.

The construction of the Jiashao bridge started in 2008 and the bridge was opened to the traffic in July 2013. It also reduced the driving time from Shaoxing to Shanghai to 1.5 hours and facilitated travel to southern Zhejiang and Fujian provinces.

2. Russky Bridge, Russia – 1,104m

Longest cable-stayed bridges
Russky bridge has a main span of 1,104m long between the 320m high A-shaped pylons. Credit: Alexander Khitrov/Shutterstock.

The Russky Bridge extends across the eastern Bosphorus Strait from the Vladivostok town of the Russian peninsula to the Russky Island. The bridge was developed for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit held in Russky Island in 2012 and was officially opened in July 2012.

The bridge has 11 spans with a main span of 1,104m between the 320m-high A-shaped pylons and runs to a total distance of 3,100m. It employs Freyssinet’s compact stay cable system integrating parallel strand cables secured by steel anchorage boxes at the top of the pylons. The clearance height of the Russky bridge is 70m above the sea level.

The Russky bridge is designed to withstand a wind velocity of approximately 36m/s, extreme temperatures between -31°C and 37°C, as well as 70cm-thick ice layers in winter.

3. Hutong Yangtze River Bridge, China – 1,092m

World's longest cable-stayed bridges
Hutong Yangtze River Bridge is a road-rail cable-stayed bridge with 1,092m-long main span. Credit: Denys Ivansky/Shutterstock.

The Hutong Yangtze River Bridge is a road-rail cable-stayed bridge, connecting the cities of Shanghai, Nantong and Suzhou in the Jiangsu province across the Yangtze River.

The main span of the bridge is 1,092m-long while its total length is 11,072m. The bridge features approximately 325m-tall diamond-type concrete bridge pylons for longer span for uninterrupted shipping in the Yangtze River Delta region, the busiest waterway of China.

The bridge has two levels, with six-lane expressway on the upper level and four rail tracks on the lower level. It is designed to resist severe typhoons, powerful earthquakes, and the impact of a 100,000t ship collision. Opened to traffic in July 2020, the Hutong Yangtze River Bridge reduces the traffic pressure of road and railway network in the Yangtze River Delta region.

4. Sutong Yangtze River Highway Bridge, China – 1,088m

World's longest cable-stayed bridges
Sutong Yangtze River Bridge shortened the three to four hours long ferry journey across the river to five minutes by road over the bridge. Credit: Glabb.

The Sutong Yangtze River Bridge connects the Suzhou and Nantong cities across the Yangtze River, which was previously connected only by ferries, a time-consuming and dangerous mode of transport.

The bridge reduced the three to four-hour-long journey by ferry across the river to five minutes by road over the bridge. With the main span of 1,088m, the bridge has a total length of 8,206m. The cable-stayed bridge has 306m-high inverted Y-shaped pylons to hold the central span, allowing the passage of large container ships.

Built with an estimated investment of $750m, the Sutong Yangtze River Bridge was opened to traffic in 2008.

5. Stonecutters Bridge, Hong Kong – 1,018m

World's longest cable-stayed bridges
Stonecutters Bridge was opened to traffic in 2009. Credit: Exploringlife.

Stonecutters is a 1.6km-long cable-stayed bridge across the Rambler Channel in Hong Kong. The bridge forms a part of Route 8, an East-West motorway linking the International Airport and the urban region of West Kowloon peninsula of Hong Kong.

The bridge features a steel main span of 1,018m-long with two 290m-tall concrete and stainless-steel towers. The bridge deck is 53m-wide, which is divided into two boxes and joined by cross girders.

The Stonecutters bridge has two bridge towers, with one on Tsing Yi Island and the other on Stonecutters Island. The bridge was designed to withstand Hong Kong’s strong typhoon winds. Opened to traffic in 2009, the bridge houses three lanes in each direction.

6. Qingshan Yangtze River Bridge, China – 938m

Longest cable-stayed bridges
Qingshan Yangtze River Bridge has the main span of 938m long. Credit: The General Office of Hubei Provincial People’s Government.

The Qingshan Yangtze River Bridge, also known as the 11th Yangtze River bridge, is a double-tower cable-stayed bridge in Wuhan, Hubei Province, central China.

With the main span of 938m, the bridge has a total length of 7,548m. The 48m-wide Qingshan Yangtze River Bridge, which spans between the Tianxingzhou Yangtze River Bridge and Yangluo Yangtze River Bridge, is the widest bridge across the Yangtze.

The two-way bridge features eight-lane expressway and two emergency lanes on both sides and is supported by 279.5m-tall A-shaped bridge towers. It can withstand a wind velocity of 120km/h and 19 gale force. The construction of the bridge started in 2015 and was completed in November 2020.

The bridge will improve the connectivity of Wuhan with its inland river ports, airport, bonded zones, logistics and industrial development parks.

7. Edong Yangtze River Bridge, China – 926m

World's longest cable-stayed bridges
Edong Yangtse River Bridge was opened to traffic in 2010. Credit: Glabb.

The Edong Yangtse River Bridge across the Yangtze River connects Huangshi and Xishui counties in Hubei Province in eastern China. The bridge forms a part of the G45 Daqing-Guangzhou Expressway and the G50 Shanghai-Chongqing Expressway.

The bridge has a length of 1,486m while its main span measures 926m-long. The construction started in 2008 and the bridge was commissioned in 2010.

8. Jiayu Yangtze River Bridge, China – 920m

Longest cable-stayed bridges
Jiayu Yangtze River Bridge features a semi-fan system design. Credit: The General Office of Hubei Provincial People’s Government.

The Jiayu Yangtze River Bridge is located between Yanwo Town, Honghu City and Xinjie Town, Jiayu County, connecting Honghu Section and West Xianning Section of a two-way six-lane ring expressway.

The bridge is an asymmetric single-side mixed-beam double-tower structure with a 255m-high south tower and a 239.5m-high north tower. It features a semi-fan system and double cable plane design. The total length of the bridge is 4,690m with the deck width of 33.5m while the main span of the bridge is 920m long.

Construction started in February 2016 while the Jiayu Yangtze River Bridge was opened to traffic in November 2019.

9. Tatara Bridge, Japan – 890m

World's longest cable-stayed bridges
The main span length of 1,480m-long Tatara bridge is 890m. Credit: Yoshinori Okada/Shutterstock.

The Tatara Bridge is located between the Omishima Island in Ehime and Ikuchi Island in Hiroshima Prefecture, stretching across the Shimanami Kaido islands in Japan.

The composite box girder type cable-stayed bridge has a total length of 1,480m with three continuous spans, supported by 226m-high bridge tower. The main span measures 890m-long while the bridge deck is 30.6m-wide.  The bridge accommodates four lanes for vehicular traffic along with two lanes for pedestrians and cyclists.

Construction started with the ground-breaking ceremony held in August 1990, while the bridge became operational in May 1999.

10. Normandy Bridge, France – 856m

Longest cable-stayed bridges
Normandy Bridge, also known as Pont de Normandie, was opened to traffic in 1995. Credit: François Roche from Paris, France.

The Normandy Bridge, also known as Pont de Normandie, is located across the Seine estuary, connecting cities of Honfleur in Calvados and Le Havre in Seine-Maritime, in France.

The main span of the bridge is 856m-long, supported by two 214m-high, 20,000t prestressed concrete towers, and 184 cables.

The total length of the bridge is 2,141m while the clearance height is 52m above the sea level. The bridge includes four lanes for vehicular traffic and two lanes for pedestrians.