Yokohama Bay Bridge

Opened 27 September 1989. A cable-stayed bridge spanning Yokohama Harbour with a total length of 860 m and a centre span of 460 m. Tower height 172 m, clearance 55 m. Upper deck carries the Bayshore Route (Metropolitan Expressway), lower deck carries National Route 357. Aesthetic design by Miyo Ohno.

Use

Bridge

Area

Tsurumi Ward / Naka Ward, Yokohama

Completed

1989

Height

172 m

Architect

Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Authority (structural design), Miyo Ohno (aesthetic design)

A Cable-Stayed Landmark Across Yokohama Harbour

From the container yards of Daikoku Futo in Tsurumi Ward to the quays of Honmoku Futo in Naka Ward, Yokohama Bay Bridge leaps 860 metres across the inner harbour in a single soaring arc. When it opened on 27 September 1989, it was the largest cable-stayed bridge in Japan, its two towers rising 172 metres above the water and its fan of stay cables spreading symmetrically against the Yokohama skyline.

The bridge carries two independent road decks. The upper level is part of the Metropolitan Expressway Bayshore Route (Kanagawa Route 7), a tolled expressway that loops around the port and links the harbour islands to the rest of the metropolitan network. The lower level carries National Route 357, a free road that serves day-to-day harbour logistics and commuters alike. The navigational clearance — 55 metres above sea level — is sufficient for the large cargo vessels that make Yokohama one of Japan’s busiest container ports. This clearance exceeds that of Rainbow Bridge in Tokyo Bay (approximately 50 metres).

Aesthetic Design and Civil Heritage

The sculptural presence of Yokohama Bay Bridge owes as much to product designer Miyo Ohno as to its engineers. Ohno was responsible for the aesthetic design — the geometry of the towers, the profile of the deck, and the night lighting that illuminates the cables in white against the harbour darkness. Her work transformed what might have been a purely functional piece of infrastructure into a defining element of the Yokohama waterfront.

In 2009, two decades after its opening, the Japan Society of Civil Engineers designated Yokohama Bay Bridge a Civil Engineering Heritage site, citing the integration of large-span cable-stayed technology with a two-level road structure as an engineering landmark. The bridge has also appeared in countless photographs and films as shorthand for Yokohama itself.

Summary

Yokohama Bay Bridge opened in 1989 with a total length of 860 metres and a centre span of 460 metres. Its twin towers stand 172 metres tall and the deck clears the harbour by 55 metres, accommodating the full-size container ships that define Yokohama’s economy. Aesthetic designer Miyo Ohno gave the structure its elegant night-lighting profile that has become integral to the city’s identity.

The lower road deck includes a pedestrian walkway — Baybridge Skywalk — offering a rare chance to cross an active expressway bridge on foot with panoramic harbour views. For hotels and inns in Yokohama, Rakuten Travel covers the full range of options.