7-588: The Ponte Girevole is a swing bridge in Taranto , Italy , spanning the navigation canal between Taranto's Mar Grande and the Mar Piccolo. The bridge connects Borgo Antico (Old Town) island to the Borgo Nuovo (new Town) peninsula. The canal was excavated in 1481 as part of the defenses of Taranto. A steel and wood bridge was first built across the canal in 1886. The present steel bridge was built in 1958. Officially titled
14-507: A flexible walking track bridge which "swings" as you walk across.) In the UK, there is a legal definition in current statute as to what is, or is not a 'swing bridge' The largest double swing-span bridge in the United States is the 3,250 feet (990 m) long, 450 feet (140 m) navigable span, 60 feet (18 m) clearance George P. Coleman Memorial Bridge . Omaha NE Turn Style Bridge
21-538: A bridge which intersects the navigation channel at an oblique angle may be built to rotate only 45 degrees, or one-eighth turn, in order to clear the channel. Small swing bridges as found over narrow canals may be pivoted only at one end, opening as would a gate, but require substantial underground structure to support the pivot. Many inner cities have swing bridges, since these require less street space than other types of bridges. (A "swing bridge" in New Zealand refers to
28-713: The Castello Aragonese . The 1958 replacement was designed by the National Society of Savigliano and built in the former Tosi shipyard in Taranto. It was inaugurated on 10 March 1958 by Italian president Giovanni Gronchi . The new bridge is electrically operated from control stations on each embankment. The sequence of operation requires the Old Town span to open to 45 degrees first, then the New Town span opens 90 degrees, and finally
35-476: The Ponte di San Francesco di Paola , the bridge has two swing spans that pivot near the banks of the canal to meet in the middle of the canal. When open, the halves are parallel to the embankment, leaving the width of the canal clear for passage. The bridge is a Taranto landmark. The canal is 400 metres (1,300 ft) long and 73 metres (240 ft) wide. The first bridge was hydraulically operated using water stored in
42-407: The Old Town span opens to its full 90 degrees. Swing bridge A swing bridge (or swing span bridge ) is a movable bridge that can be rotated horizontally around a vertical axis. It has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravity, about which the swing span (turning span) can then pivot horizontally as shown in
49-447: The animated illustration to the right. In its closed position, a swing bridge carrying a road or railway over a river or canal , for example, allows traffic to cross. When a water vessel needs to pass the bridge, road traffic is stopped (usually by traffic signals and barriers), and then motors rotate the bridge horizontally about its pivot point. The typical swing bridge will rotate approximately 90 degrees, or one-quarter turn; however,
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