Overview
- Features: Single span cantilever bridge over the Hooghly River
- Opening Times: All day, every day
- Best Time to Visit: Early morning
- Duration: 20 to 30 mins
- Travelled By: Bus
- Cost: Free
- Address: Rabindra Setu, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
- Type: Bridge
Author Reviews[display_rating_item_results rating_form_id=”2″ rating_entry_ids=”1″ show_category_filter=”false” show_options=”true” result_type=”star_rating” preserve_max_rating=”true” show_title=”false” show_count=”false” ]
Total Rating: [display_rating_result rating_form_id=”2″ show_count=”false” show_rich_snippets=true] [accordions load=”1″] [accordion title=”User Reviews” last] [display_rating_item_results rating_form_id=”5″ show_options=”true” result_type=”star_rating” preserve_max_rating=”true” show_title=”false” show_count=”true” show_rich_snippets=true] [/accordion] [accordion title=”Add Review”][display_rating_form show_email_input=”true” show_comment_textarea=”true” show_name_input=”true” rating_form_id=”5″] [/accordion] [/accordions]
Summary
Over the years, the Howrah Bridge has become an iconic landmark and symbol of Kolkata. Commissioned in 1943 during WWII, it was the third-longest cantilever bridge at the time of its construction; today, it is the sixth-longest bridge of its type in the world.
Howrah Bridge Kolkata
Over the years, the Howrah Bridge has become an iconic landmark and symbol of Kolkata. It is a 460-m (1528-ft) single span cantilever bridge with a suspended span over the Hooghly River in West Bengal. The bridge serves as the gateway to Kolkata, connecting it to the Howrah Station, the largest train station in Kolkata. As such, it carries a daily traffic of approximately 100,000 vehicles and possibly more than 150,000 pedestrians, easily making it the busiest cantilever bridge in the world.
Commissioned in 1943 during WWII, it was the third-longest cantilever bridge at the time of its construction; today, it is the sixth-longest bridge of its type in the world. To avoid affecting river currents and silting, the two 80-m-high piers rise from road level; the 450 m span expands by a metre on a hot day.
The Howrah Bridge has been filmed in several movies both Indian and international.
Rudyard Kipling mentioned the bridge in City of Dreadful Night:
Why, this is London! This is the docks. This is imperial. This is worth coming across India to see.
At night the Howrah Bridge is illuminated, which makes a fine sight; if waiting for a night train at Howrah station go to the first floor for a fantastic view of the bridge.
For the best view, fight your way through the Kolkata flower market to Mallick Ghat. Photography of the bridge itself is technically prohibited but enforcement appears to be lax of late and if you’re stopped here, you might sneak a discreet shot from one of the various river-ferries that ply the Hooghly to the vast 1906 Howrah train station.
Getting to & from Howrah Bridge
To get to Mallick Ghat, take a bus down along Strand Road and get off at Bara Bazar bus stop. From there, it’s a short walk to the Kolkata flower market from where you can get the best view of the Howrah Bridge.
If you want to walk across the Howrah Bridge along with thousand other commuters and men with improbable loads on their heads, take the pedestrian walkway that starts from Strand Road.
