Building Spotlight: The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge

Charleston, South Carolina is renowned for its historic architecture.  The shotgun houses, the painted ladies, the gingerbread woodwork, and even those little outbuildings that were once used as kitchens.

But getting to Charleston takes you across a piece of amazing modern architecture.  You might not expect it, but the Cooper River is spanned by a thoroughly modern cable-stayed bridge.

The Arthur Ravenel Junior Bridge has two central diamonds from which cables fan out to support the center span and the approach ramps on either side.  Its main span is a massive 1,546 feet long, making it the longest cable-stayed bridge in the western hemisphere.  Unfortunately, it also means that it's very difficult to take a good picture of the bridge since it's hard to give it a sense of scale and also fit a good portion of it into frame.

More about the Arthur Ravenel Junior Bridge here.
More Charleston, South Carolina architecture here.