The 15 Longest Suspension Bridges in America
The collective image of a bridge in the United States is likely a pair of towers looming over a road deck. The deck is suspended over water by massive cables strung between the towers with anchorages at either end of the bridge. The scale of these bridges is astonishing as you drive across them. No matter what you’re driving, you feel like an ant passing through the towers reached up into the sky. However, if you look at a list of the longest bridges in the United States, you won’t see suspension bridges near the top.
Technically, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway is the longest bridge in the United States. The country’s three longest bridges are viaducts, a roadway elevated by thousands of concrete pilings. I don’t want to come off as a bridge architecture snob, but suspension bridges are better than viaducts. I know that every bridge design has its place and purpose, but suspension bridges are just visually more interesting.
Here’s a list of the longest suspension bridges in the United States. The bridges are ranked by the length of the longest span, so no viaducts.
Honorable Mention – Brooklyn Bridge
Photo: Fabian Krause / EyeEm (Getty Images)
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With a 1,595-foot main span, the Brooklyn Bridge is the 18th longest-suspension bridge in the United States. The iconic bridge connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan in New York City might be just outside the top 15, but it is still worth mentioning. The Brooklyn Bridge opened in 1883 and was the world’s longest suspension bridge until 1903.
15. Williamsburg Bridge
Photo: Michael Lee (Getty Images)
Like the Brooklyn Bridge, the Williamsburg Bridge crosses the East River in New York City. The bridge connects Williamsburg in Brooklyn and Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Opened in 1903, the bridge’s 1,600-foot span surpassed the Brooklyn Bridge to become the longest suspension bridge in the world until 1924. Today, the Williamsburg Bridge is the 15th-longest in the United States.
14. Bear Mountain Bridge
Photo: Phil Haber Photography (Getty Images)
With a 1,632-foot main span, the Bear Mountain Bridge is the 14th-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge crosses the Hudson River to connect Bear Mountain State Park and Westchester County, 30 miles north of New York City. The Bear Mountain Bridge opened in 1924 as the world’s longest suspension bridge for 19 months until it was surpassed by the list’s next bridge.
13. Benjamin Franklin Bridge
Photo: Howard Roberts / EyeEm (Getty Images)
With a 1,750-foot main span, the Benjamin Franklin Bridge is the 13th-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge crosses the Delaware River connecting Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Camden, New Jersey. The Ben Franklin Bridge was the world’s longest suspension bridge until 1929 when it was surpassed by a later entry on this list.
12. Throgs Neck Bridge
Photo: demerzel21 (Getty Images)
With a 1,800-foot main span, the Throgs Neck Bridge is the 12th-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge crosses the northern mouth of the East River in New York City, connecting Bay Terrace, Queens with Throggs Neck in the Bronx. Yes, the spelling of the neighborhood and the bridge are different. The Throgs Neck Bridge opened in 1961 to alleviate traffic on a later entry on this list.
11. Ambassador Bridge
Photo: Steven_Kriemadis (Getty Images)
With a 1,850-foot main span, the Ambassador Bridge is the 11th-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge crosses the Detroit River, connecting Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Yes, the bridge crosses an international border. The Ambassador Bridge was the world’s longest suspension bridge until 1931 when it was surpassed by a later entry on this list.
10. Walt Whitman Bridge
Photo: BrianEKushner (Getty Images)
With a 2,000-foot main span, the Walt Whitman Bridge is the 10th-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge crosses the Delaware River connecting Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Gloucester City, New Jersey.
9. Delaware Memorial Bridge
Photo: Ultima_Gaina (Getty Images)
With parallel 2,150-foot main spans, the Delaware Memorial Bridge is the ninth-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge links Delaware and New Jersey over the Delaware River. The first span opened in 1951, and the second span opened in 1968.
8. Bronx-Whitestone Bridge
Photo: robertcicchetti (Getty Images)
With a 2,300-foot main span, the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge is the eighth-longest suspension bridge in the United States. As its name implies, the bridge crosses the East River in New York City, connecting Whitestone, Queens with the Bronx. The bridge is just two miles west of the Throgs Neck Bridge. Proving the theory of induced demand, the Throgs Neck initially reduced traffic but created more traffic in the long run. There have been plans for a third fixed crossing to Long Island ever since.
7. San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge
Photo: bluejayphoto (Getty Images)
Each of the 2,310-foot western spans makes the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge the seventh-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge connects San Francisco and Oakland, California over San Francisco Bay via Yerba Buena Island. Technically, with the island midpoint, the Bay Bridge is two different bridges.
6. Carquinez Bridge
Photo: Chris LaBasco (Getty Images)
With a 2,390-foot main, the Alfred Zampa Memorial Bridge is the sixth-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge crosses the Carquinez Strait at the northeastern end of San Francisco Bay. It also runs parallel to an older cantilever bridge. Both are collectively referred to and operated as the Carquinez Bridge.
5. Tacoma Narrows Bridge
Photo: casdvm (Getty Images)
With parallel 2,800-foot spans, the Tacoma Narrows Bridge is the fifth-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge crosses the Tacoma Narrows of the Puget Sound in Washington. The older bridge opened in 1950, and the newer bridge opened in 2007. However, many know of the original 1940 Tacoma Narrows Bridge which collapsed four months after opening.
4. George Washington Bridge
Photo: Adonis page (Getty Images)
With a 3,500-foot main span, the George Washington Bridge is the fourth-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge connects Manhattan in New York City with Fort Lee, New Jersey. From when it opened in 1931, the George Washington Bridge was the world’s longest suspension bridge until 1937 when it was surpassed by a later entry on this list.
3. Mackinac Bridge
Photo: Diana Robinson Photography (Getty Images)
With a 3,800-foot main span, the Mackinac Bridge is the third-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge connects the Lower and Upper peninsulas of Michigan. At almost five miles in total length, the Mackinac Bridge is technically the world’s longest suspension bridge between anchorages.
2. Golden Gate Bridge
Photo: David Chang (Getty Images)
With a 4,200-foot main span, the Golden Gate Bridge is the second-longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge links San Francisco, California with Marin County. The Golden Gate Bridge was the world’s longest suspension bridge from 1937 until 1964 when it was surpassed by the final entry on this list.
1. Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge
Photo: VNB Lightning
With a 4,260-foot main span, the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge is the longest suspension bridge in the United States. The bridge connects Staten Island and Brooklyn in New York City. From its opening in 1967, the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world until 1981 when it was surpassed by the Humber Bridge in Britain.
