The Humber Bridge opened in 1981, as the longest single-span suspension bridge in the world. A suspension bridge doesn’t have supports in the middle to obstruct the estuary, a key factor in its design as the shipping channels along the River Humber are constantly shifting.  

However, construction problems were huge. The north side was chalk, and therefore relatively easy to build on. But the south side was soft, soggy clay and massive foundations reinforced with huge lumps of steel had to be sunk down 36m – four-and-a-half times deeper than the north side.

The 2220m-long bridge created and opened up the whole region of Humberside, linking the towns of Hull and Grimsby. It ran way over budget and the debt won’t be repaid until 2032. We’re still paying for it!

The good news is that it’s claimed that the spin-off benefits for the region will far outweigh all the money it will eventually cost.