The £3.4bn bridge between two countries in Europe costs a whopping £52 to cross inspired a hit TV show .
While San Franciso's Golden Gate, London's Tower Bridge and Florence's Ponte Vecchio - all are famous in their own right whether it be for its sheer monstrous size or beauty. But there is another, lesser known bridge in Europe that is equally as impressive.
Since July 2000, Sweden and Denmark have officially been linked by the resund Bridge, a combined railway and motorway connection across the Øresund strait. Øresund Bridge runs from the Swedish coast near the city of Malmo to the artificial Danish island of Peberholm, located in the middle of the strait.
READ MORE: Mum's fury as National Express drops her and three-year-old son off miles from home
From there, the link is completed by a tunnel connecting the island to Amager, where Copenhagen Airport is located. The total length of the infrastructure is 9.8 miles. Peberholm, built to create a crossover point between the tunnel and the bridge, has been equipped with an exit from the motorway, banned from unauthorised traffic, and a helicopter pad to be used mainly in case of traffic accidents.
The cost of this infrastructure came to approximately £3.44billion (DKK 30bn) at the time, paid for by both the Danish and Swedish governments. In 2003 it was shared that Copenhagen and Stockholm were expecting to recoup the money spent on this infrastructure, consisting of both a bridge, a tunnel and an artificial island, by 2037.
The Oresund Bridge, used by an average of 18,434 vehicles daily in 2022, is predicted by the Oresund Committee to bring a national economic gain of £6.53bn on both sides of the strait. This is due to increased commuting and reduced associated costs. The Committee, which promotes regional political collaboration, supports a 2021 study suggesting the bridge has boosted Malmo. The Swedish city saw a rise in innovation following the bridge's launch, possibly due to skilled workers commuting there.
Motorists using the bridge must pay at toll booths located on the Swedish side. The cost varies depending on the vehicle type, ranging from £26.35 for a motorcycle to £183.34 for motorhomes and vans. The Øresund Bridge has become a part of daily life for many Danes and Swedes and has even entered pop culture. The first season of the noir crime TV series 'The Bridge', aired on the BBC since 2012, revolves around a dead body found on the resund Bridge, sparking a fictional investigation by Swedish and Danish police.
The set for the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest, hosted by Malmo, was inspired by this bridge. Sweden wanted to symbolise its connection with the rest of Europe. This bridge is among Europe's longest, alongside the 12-mile-long Kerch Bridge that Russian President Vladimir Putin desired to link Russia and Crimea after his unlawful annexation of the peninsula, and Portugal's Vasco de Gama Bridge.