Turkey builds massive bridge linking Europe and Asia

By SUZAN FRASER
Associated Press

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s president and South Korea’s prime minister have inaugurated a massive suspension bridge over the Dardanelles Strait that connects the European and Asian shores of the key waterway. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday that the “1915 Canakkale Bridge,” with a 2,023-meter (6,637 feet) span between its towers, has become the world’s longest suspension bridge. The bridge in northwestern Canakkale province will allow travelers to cross the Dardanelles in just six minutes compared to the previous 1 1/2 hours by ferry. The inauguration was timed to coincide with the 107th anniversary of Turkey’s World War I naval victory over a joint British and French fleet attacking the Dardanelles.