Mexico Bridges 90 to 100 meters

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Puente Botijas (93 meters high) is one of many high bridges on Mexico’s Durango-Mazatlán highway now under construction in the states of Sinaloa and Durango. It will be the only crossing for more than 500 miles (800 km) between the pacific coast and the interior of Mexico. The path of this new highway roughly parallels the famous “Devil’s Backbone”, a narrow road that earned its nickname from the way it follows the precarious ridge crest of the jagged peaks of the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains.

Among high bridge highways, this will be the 3rd greatest in the world with 8 major bridges that exceed 300 feet (90 mtrs) in height including Baluarte, Santa Lucia, Neverías, La Pinta, Chico, Botijas, Pueblo Nuevo and El Carrizo. Only China’s West Hurong and Kunming-Guiyang and Italy’s A3 highways have a greater collection of high bridges.

The highest railway bridge on the famous Chihuahua al Pacifico railway in Copper canyon, the Puente Chinipas bridge (90 meters high) was completed in 1961. Two bulky concrete piers support a 3-span truss with a maximum span of 295 feet (90 mtrs). A number of years later, the lower half of the bridge was submerged in a reservoir. The Copper Canyon line has several other tall bridges in the 50 to 60 meter height range including Cascada, La Laja and Fuerte.

Chinipas Bridge before a reservoir submerged most of the piers

North America’s highest suspension footbridge, the puente Ojuela or Mapimi (90 meters high?) near Torreon in the state of Durango was originally built in 1898 to carry a mining car rail line. The tracks were eventually pulled up and the gold mine was abandoned. The structure was refurbished in 1992. The main span of 1,030 feet (314 mtrs) is longer than any other pedestrian bridge in North America. The height may be as low as 65 meters.

The highest in a large collection of towering trestles on the Guadalajara-Colima railway line as it twists through the Tuxpan River valley, the Puente Barranca de Santa Rosa (85 meters high) is a 398 foot (121 mtr) long deck truss with a 154 foot (47 mtr) main span supported on two towers 48 feet (14.6 mtrs) long. Completed around 1908, the bridge remains unchanged after more than 100 years of heavy use. The 146 foot (44.5 mtr) tall trestle tower only goes halfway down into the canyon where the walls suddenly drop vertically on both sides. Just a mile north of the Santa Rosa canyon on the same rail line is a similar bridge about 191 feet (58 mtrs) high over the Barrranca de los Los Yugos. Both bridges are east of Fernandez in Colima state.