SkyBridge (TransLink)

---

title: "SkyBridge (TransLink)" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1989-establishments-in-british-columbia", "bridges-completed-in-1989", "bridges-in-greater-vancouver", "bridges-over-the-fraser-river", "buildings-and-structures-in-new-westminster", "buildings-and-structures-in-surrey,-british-columbia", "transport-in-new-westminster", "transport-in-surrey,-british-columbia", "cable-stayed-bridges-in-canada", "expo-line-(skytrain)", "railway-bridges-in-british-columbia", "rapid-transit-bridges"] description: "Cable-stayed bridge in Metro Vancouver, Canada" topic_path: "geography/united-kingdom" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SkyBridge_(TransLink)" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Cable-stayed bridge in Metro Vancouver, Canada ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox bridge"]

Field	Value
bridge_name	SkyBridge
image	SkyBridge sunset.jpg
carries	Two tracks of the Expo Line and a maintenance track
crosses	Fraser River
locale	New Westminster
Surrey
location	New Westminster
length	616 m
height	123 m
mainspan	340 m
number_spans	3
piers_in_water	2
below	45 m
num_track	2
track_gauge
electrification	600 V DC third & fourth rail linear induction
open
coordinates
::

| bridge_name = SkyBridge | image = SkyBridge sunset.jpg | image_size = | carries = Two tracks of the Expo Line and a maintenance track | crosses = Fraser River | locale = New Westminster Surrey | location = New Westminster | length = 616 m | height = 123 m | mainspan = 340 m | number_spans = 3 | piers_in_water = 2 | below = 45 m | num_track = 2 | track_gauge = | electrification = 600 V DC third & fourth rail linear induction | open = | coordinates = The SkyBridge is a cable-stayed railway bridge in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Built between 1987 and 1989, it carries trains of the Expo Line of TransLink's SkyTrain across the Fraser River between New Westminster and Surrey. The SkyBridge opened for revenue use on March 16, 1990, with the second half of the Phase II extension of SkyTrain to Scott Road station.

History

Construction of the bridge began on October 28, 1987. The first half of the bridge heading towards Surrey was completed first, with the New Westminster half being completed on March 19, 1990.

Details

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/SkyBridge_from_SkyTrain_(5770458210).jpg" caption="Detail of the tracks in 2011"] ::

The SkyBridge has two tracks carrying Expo Line trains which run between King George station in Surrey and Waterfront station in Downtown Vancouver. A third set of rails in the middle, not connected to the SkyTrain tracks, is used by maintenance crews to truck equipment back and forth on the bridge. The deck is composed of 104 pre-fabricated concrete sections which were built in Richmond, transported via barge, and lifted into place with heavy machinery. When constructed, the concrete sections were glued together with an epoxy resin. The bridge does not carry road traffic, which uses the neighbouring Pattullo Bridge instead.

The bridge has two 123 m tall towers and carries trains 45 m above the Fraser River and valley. The main span is 340 m and the total length is 616 m. The bridge was the longest cable-supported transit-only bridge in the world from its opening in 1990 to 2019, it has since been surpassed by the Egongyan Rail Transit Bridge, the Nanjimen Yangtze River Bridge and tied with the Gaojia Huayuan Jialing River Rail Transit Bridge, all in Chongqing, China.

Delayed opening

The opening of the bridge faced some delay as the non-unionized consortium was accused of underbidding unionized firms. In response, labour organizers pressured other unions to boycott the project altogether. The issue was the climax of a series of defeats for construction unions as a result of the Social Credit Party's preference for non-union workers. The situation drew ire from the BC and Yukon Building and Construction Trades Council, who called it a "hot site".

Notes

References

• Bridges of Greater Vancouver

References

1. (December 4, 1987). "The Buzzer". BC Transit.
2. "SkyTrain & SkyBridge".
3. "Heritage Database". New Westminster Public Library.
4. (September 8, 1988). "Crew completes SkyBridge link: $28-million bridge faces rigorous tests". The Vancouver Sun.
5. Davis, Chuck. (2011). "The Chuck Davis History of Metropolitan Vancouver". Coastal Publishing.
6. Lee, Jeff. (September 7, 1988). "Skybridge last link to get lift during ceremony". The Vancouver Sun.
7. "Vancouver SkyTrain, Canada".
8. "Skytrain Bridge". Buckland & Taylor Ltd..
9. Bramham, Daphne. (February 15, 1989). "Politicians' battles, labor woes overshadow SkyTrain advance". Postmedia Network Inc..
10. (August 2, 2008). "SkyBridge opening protested". CNW Group Ltd.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::