Date Built: 

Opened to the public on November 15, 2009.

Reason it was Built:

The construction first began in 1989. The second stage (divided into three stages of development) was finished a decade ahead of schedule.

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Size and Physical Characteristics

• The Sidu River Bridge is the tallest bridge in the world, standing around 1,500 ft tall. 
• There are exactly 1,550 feet from the bottom of the bridge to the valley floor.
  
• It is located at the border of Yichang and En’shi in the Hubei province. It is 1365 m across. 
  

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Impact on Physical Geography

The Sidu River Bridge connects Shanghai on the pacific coast with Chongqing and Chengdu in the west. 

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Effect on Ecological Systems (Plants & Animals)

When assembling the bridge builders dug tunnels into the rocky peaks of the mountains, which could have resulted in the cutting down of trees that are home to many different species.

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Impact on Human Geography

The Sidu River Bridge is a part of the G50 Huyu Expressway which parallels the China National Highway 318, making an east-west route between Shanghai and Chengdu. This bridge provides an alternate route for people across the Sidu River.

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Was there any CONTROVERSY over the construction? 

There was no controversy over the building of this bridge. It was needed in order to pass over the Sidu River. 

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The Government's Role in the Construction.

It looks like the government had little involvement other than the company that built the Sidu River Bridge being state-owned. The Sidu River Bridge was constructed by China Communications Construction Company Limited. The company was founded by the China Communications Construction Group and incorporated on October 8, 2006.     

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Interesting Facts:

·         The highest bridge in the world at 1,627 feet (496m).

·         The main span of the bridge is 2,952 feet long (900m).

·         Between the valley floor of the river gorge and the bridge’s roadway, there’s about a 1,550 foot drop!

·         The cost to build this bridge was 720 million yuan (approximately $100 million US).

·         “It is said that if a person falls from the Siduhe bridge it will reach terminal velocity, meaning that there is no acceleration, the body of the person is falling at a constant speed; this is the only bridge in the world where is possible such a phenomenon.” 
Pasted from- http://lookbridges.com/siduhe-river-bridge-in-hubei-china

·         The bridge consists of 71 different sections, the largest of which weighs 91.6 metric tons!

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Citations:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/propertypicturegalleries/8997330/The-highest-tallest-longest-and-oldest-bridges-in-the-world.html

http://www.incredipedia.info/2010/10/world-scariest-bridges-part-2.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidu_River_Bridge

http://lookbridges.com/siduhe-river-bridge-in-hubei-china

http://en.ccccltd.cn/aboutcompany/introduction/

http://www.highestbridges.com/wiki/index.php?title=Siduhe_River_Bridge

http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/worlds-scariest-bridges/12

http://en.ccccltd.cn/business/infrastructureconstruction/bridge/201011/t20101111_1510.html