Description of the attraction
The 25 April Bridge is a suspension bridge that links Lisbon with the municipality of Almada, which is on the left bank of the Tagus River. The grand opening of the bridge took place on August 6, 1966, and in 1999 the first train was launched across the bridge.
The April 25 Bridge is very often compared to the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco (USA) due to the fact that they have similar designs (cable suspension bridge) and color. Interestingly, the bridge in Lisbon was built by the same company that built the San Francisco-Oakland Bridge (Bay Bridge), which also explains their similarity in design.
The total length of the bridge is 2277 m, and it is one of the twenty longest suspension bridges in the world. On the upper platform of the bridge there is a motorway with 6 traffic lanes, at the bottom there are railway tracks. The idea of building the bridge was proposed by the Portuguese engineer and entrepreneur Antonio Belo back in 1929. A commission was formed and it was decided to build a road and a railway bridge in Lisbon. But the project was delayed in favor of a bridge over the river in the village of Vila Franca de Xira, which is located 35 km north of Lisbon. In 1958, the question of building the bridge was once again raised and, finally, in 1962, its construction began. The opening of the bridge was attended by the President of Portugal, Admiral Américo Tomaz, and the Patriarch of Lisbon, Cardinal Manuel Gonçalves Cerezheira. The bridge was named after Prime Minister Antonio de Oliveira Salazar, who was also present at its opening. In 1974, after the Revolution of Red Carnations in Portugal, the bridge was renamed the 25 April Bridge, on this day the revolution began.
