Galata Bridge (Galata Köprüsü) is the bridge built on the Golden Horn in Istanbul, connecting Karaköy and Eminönü.
The first bridge connecting the Golden Horn, known as the “Galata Bridge”, was built in 1845. This bridge was renovated in 1863, 1875 and 1912.In the style of the First National Architectural Movement, the bridge, built in 1912, has become one of the city’s symbols. Galata Bridge, the city’s symbol, burned down in 1992 and was named “Historical Galata Bridge”.
The first recorded bridge over the Golden Horn was built during the reign of Justinian the Great in the 6th century, close to the area near the Theodosian Land Walls at the city’s western end.
The Turkish construction company STFA built the fifth Galata bridge just a few meters away from the previous bridge between Karaköy and Eminönü, which was completed in December 1994. It was designed and supervised by GAMB (Göncer Ayalp Engineering Company).
It is a bascule bridge, which is 490 m (1,610 ft) long with a main span of 80 m (260 ft). The bridge’s deck is 42 m (138 ft) wide and has two vehicular lanes and one walkway in each direction. Tram tracks running down the middle of it allow the T1 tram to run from Bağcılar, in the western suburbs, to Kabataş, in front of the New Mosque and a few blocks away from Dolmabahçe Palace.
In 2003, a string of restaurants were added to the underside of the bridge in imitation of the more ramshackle ones that had clung to the underside of the fourth bridge.
