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Sydney Harbour Bridge Pylon Loockout
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The Sydney Harbour Bridge is the world’s largest steel arch bridge and it is 1,149 meters long. The highest part of the bridge is 134 metres above sea level. The height of the bridge increases almost 20cm in hot weather due to expansion of the steel. Interestingly the 4 pylons at either end of the bridge, are purely decorative.
To build the bridge, all the steel had to be imported. More than 52,800 tonnes were brought by ship from England to Australia during the construction. Local craftsmen provided the more than 6 Million hand made rivets to hold it all together. It took 1,400 men - eight years to build the bridge. 16 people died in the construction of the bridge.
The bridge was first opened in 1932, and the public had never seen anything like it there were some fears about whether it would hold. Prior to its opening, there was a public display of 96 steam locomotives were positioned prove the load capacity of the bridge. When it opened it cost a car six pence to cross and horse and rider cost 3 pence. Today it costs $3.30 and you can’t take horses onto it.
Painting of the bridge is done all year around. The paint has to be removed before putting new paint on, because each new layer adds a lot of weight to the bridge. In fact 272,000 litres of paint are required to give the Bridge its three coats. Paul Hogan, star of Crocodile Dundee, was one of the most famous workers on the bridge, erecting ropes and scaffolds before becoming an actor.
The Harbour Bridge’s original cost was $4.2 million and it took 55 years to pay off.
Today it carries 160,000 vehicles every day.
To build the bridge, all the steel had to be imported. More than 52,800 tonnes were brought by ship from England to Australia during the construction. Local craftsmen provided the more than 6 Million hand made rivets to hold it all together. It took 1,400 men - eight years to build the bridge. 16 people died in the construction of the bridge.
The bridge was first opened in 1932, and the public had never seen anything like it there were some fears about whether it would hold. Prior to its opening, there was a public display of 96 steam locomotives were positioned prove the load capacity of the bridge. When it opened it cost a car six pence to cross and horse and rider cost 3 pence. Today it costs $3.30 and you can’t take horses onto it.
Painting of the bridge is done all year around. The paint has to be removed before putting new paint on, because each new layer adds a lot of weight to the bridge. In fact 272,000 litres of paint are required to give the Bridge its three coats. Paul Hogan, star of Crocodile Dundee, was one of the most famous workers on the bridge, erecting ropes and scaffolds before becoming an actor.
The Harbour Bridge’s original cost was $4.2 million and it took 55 years to pay off.
Today it carries 160,000 vehicles every day.
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