New River Gorge Bridge, Steel arch bridge in Fayetteville, United States.
New River Gorge Bridge is a steel arch bridge in Fayetteville, United States, that spans 924 meters across a deep canyon. The structure rises 267 meters above the water, with a main arch measuring 518 meters from end to end.
Construction began in June 1974 and took three years to complete, with a total cost of 37 million dollars. When it opened, the crossing time dropped from 45 minutes on the old route to less than one minute.
The bridge serves as a gathering point for locals and travelers who stop along the nearby overlooks to take in the view of the gorge. Many visitors combine their trip here with hikes along the rim or white-water rafting trips on the river below.
The bridge carries U.S. Route 19 across the gorge and remains open year-round for cars, serving about 16,200 vehicles each day. Pedestrians cannot usually walk across, except on one October day each year when the roadway closes to traffic and opens to visitors.
On the third Saturday each October, the bridge becomes a platform for base jumping and rappelling, drawing about 80,000 spectators to the event. During Bridge Day, participants leap from the railing and deploy their parachutes on the way down to the river below.
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