The Bridge

Sydney Harbour Bridge:
A Part of Sydney History

The Sydney Harbour Bridge is one of the most recognisable symbols of Australia. The Bridge provides a frame for one of the most beautiful harbours in the world and holds a special place in the city’s heart.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge has connected the Sydney CBD with the North Shore of the harbour since it opened in 1932. It is the world’s largest (but not longest) steel-arch Bridge. It was beaten in length, by New York’s Bayonne Bridge, which is 25 feet longer and opened just four months earlier.

On major celebrations in Sydney history, like New Year’s Eve or the announcement of the Sydney Olympic Games, the Bridge has always been the focal point.

Sydneysiders gather on boats and in the coves and corners of the Sydney Harbour foreshore to watch it explode with spectacular fireworks.

New Year’s Eve celebrations are broadcast each year on news channels all around the world, with the Sydney Harbour Bridge playing a starring role.

A timeline of the Bridge in Sydney History:

28 July 1923:	First sod turned
26 March 1925:	Foundation stones of southern abutment tower laid
26 October 1928:	Construction of the main arch begins
26 November 1929:	Erection of a record tonnage of steel on one day – 589 tonnes
19 August 1930:	Main arch joined
16 January 1932:	Last stone set in Pylons
21 January 1932:	Last rivet driven in
19 March 1932:	Road declared open for traffic - Sydney history is made.

Design

Dr John Job Crew Bradfield is known as the ‘Father of the Bridge’ and was the man behind the concept. Bradfield prepared the general design and the NSW government awarded the construction contract to the English firm Dorman Long and Co. for the odd sum of £4,217,721, 11 shillings and 10 pence on 24 March 1924.

Sir Ralph Freeman , the consulting engineer, prepared the detailed plans. He later had a falling out with Bradfield over the question of who really designed the Bridge. But it was Bradfield’s name that went into the Sydney history books when he lent his name to the Bradfield Highway, which runs across the Bridge.

Up to 800 tenant families were relocated to make way for the approach spans of the Bridge - their homes were destroyed and the families were never compensated.

Construction

Construction began with the ‘turning of the first sod’ on 28 July 1923. Over 1500 workers were employed on the Sydney Harbour Bridge each year over the eight-year building period. Sixteen workers lost their lives during the construction.

Two workshops were set up at Milsons Point on the North Shore to prepare the steel - 79% of which was imported from England, while the remainder was sourced locally.

After the approach spans were constructed, the enormous job of erecting the main arch began. Arch construction began simultaneously on both the north and south sides of Sydney Harbour, as two sections were built out progressively from each shore. Each one was held back by 128 cables anchored underground through U-shaped tunnels.

The steel girders were brought into position by barges floating in Sydney Harbour. The steel was lifted up by two 580-tonne creeper cranes mounted on top of the Bridge. These cranes built the Bridge out before them as they inched forward.

Sydneysiders watched with awe at Sydney history in the making as the massive half-arches drew closer together. The ambitious project lifted the spirits of the depression-era city and the half-built Bridge was captured by many artists, including acclaimed painter Grace Cossington-Smith.

There was great excitement on 19 August 1930 when the arch was successfully joined at 10pm with Bradfield and Freeman present. The steel decking was then hung from the arch and was completed in nine months. It was built from the centre outwards to save time moving the cranes. Finally, the Bridge was test loaded using up to 96 steam locomotives placed along the tram and train lines on the Bridge.

At the completion of the project, Sydney’s visual appeal had been changed forever, but the cost of the Bridge had risen to over £10 million, more than double the original quote. The final payment for the construction loans was not made until October 1988.

    A piece of Sydney history

• Sydney has nicknamed the Bridge ‘the coat hanger’
• The Bridge is not completely stationary. It can rise or fall 18cm due to heating or cooling.
• In a quirk of Sydney history, Australian comedian Paul Hogan was once employed as a painter on the Bridge.

Opening

Depression-era Sydney was elated by the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Crowds of up to one million people lined the foreshore to see the celebrations. They included a procession of passenger ships, a ‘Venetian carnival’, marching bands, a gun salute and a fly-by.

But there was an unexpected drama at the official opening ceremony. The NSW Premier Jack Lang was due to cut the ribbon to officially the open the Bridge, when a mounted protestor interupted proceedings. The ribbon was slashed instead by the sword of Captain Francis De Groot of the paramilitary group, the New Guard. A militant monarchist, De Groot believed that only a member of the Royal family should have the honour of opening the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

The first ticket on the first train over the Bridge, numbered 00001, was bought by BridgeClimb founder Paul Cave’s father-in-law. A teenager at the time, he queued for two days to claim the ticket that became an integral part of the BridgeClimb story.

Traffic

The Sydney Harbour Bridge carries eight vehicle lanes, two train lines, a footway and a cycleway. When it opened, the Bridge also carried two tram lines, but these were replaced with buses on 29 June 1958. Today, these southbound lanes remain separated by concrete barriers from the rest of the traffic.

On 13 July 1966, the prohibition on changing lanes on the Bridge was lifted and on 5 July 1970, a one-way toll was introduced.

Sydney ’s iconic harbour vista was completed when the World Heritage listed Sydney Opera House opened in October 1973.

Today an average of around 161,000 vehicles use the Bridge each day. When the Bridge opened in 1932 only 11,000 vehicles crossed daily.

The Harbour Tunnel opened on 31 August 1993, to alleviate traffic pressure on the Bridge.