Place · cantilever truss bridge · India
Howrah Bridge, Kolkata
Also known as Howrah Bridge, Rabindra Setu, Howrah Setu
The 705-metre cantilever truss bridge across the Hooghly connecting Kolkata to Howrah, built between 1936 and 1942 and opened on 3 February 1943 after the First World War had delayed the project twice. The bridge replaced an 1874 pontoon bridge and was renamed Rabindra Setu in 1965. It carries about 100,000 vehicles and 150,000 pedestrians daily, which makes it the busiest cantilever bridge in the world. The engineering — a single central span of 460 metres with no mid-river pier — was achieved to clear the Hooghly's shipping lane.
- Date
- 1936–1942
- Function
- Water & infrastructure
- Patron dynasty
- British Raj · Indian Union
- Tradition
- Standard reference; INTACH, ASI and municipal records; institutional histories.
- Confidence
- Established / referenced
- Location
- 22.585, 88.347
Connections (1)
- Site withinKolkata
Howrah Bridge spans the Hooghly from Kolkata to Howrah at the city's western edge — the central transport link that defines Kolkata's modern urban geography. The 1943 opening of the cantilever bridge and its daily carriage of 100,000 vehicles and 150,000 pedestrians make it the busiest cantilever bridge in the world and Kolkata's single most-photographed modern landmark.