Opened in July 2000 at a staggering cost of 4.5 Billion USD, the Øresund Bridge was jointly built by the governments of Sweden and Denmark and has the distinction of being the longest road-rail bridge in Europe that connects Scandinavia to Europe. When it was contemplated there were a few design considerations; ships needed to pass under the bridge, but it could not be too tall on the other end as it would impact on the Copenhagen Airport.
The result was phenomenal, what looks like a water dragon winding its way up to Sweden before submerging into the water is actually an 8 km cable stay bridge with four 204 m tall pylons that connects to a 4 km man-made island of Peberholm and then a 4 km underwater tunnel. The man-made island that was created from the material dredged up to house the pylons; has unexpectedly become a glorious Eco-sanctuary for more than 500 plants varieties and home to many different birds.
