is a

deck arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct ( ...

in the southern

Hakkōda Mountains The are an active volcanic complex in south-central Aomori Prefecture, Japan, in Towada-Hachimantai National Park. Often called or simply , the mountains are collectively listed as one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains. Its highest peak, ...

in the city of

Aomori is the capital city of Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 278,964 in 136,457 households, and a population density of 340 people per square kilometer spread over the city's total area of ...

Aomori Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. It carries National Route 394 at a height of above Jōgakura Creek. Located inside of

Towada-Hachimantai National Park is a national park comprising two separate areas of Aomori, Iwate, and Akita Prefectures, Japan. The Towada-Hakkōda area encompasses Lake Towada, Mount Hakkōda, and most of the Oirase River valley. The Hachimantai area includes Mount Hachim ...

, the bridge is known as being a place for observing the area's scenic beauty as well as being the longest of its type in Japan.

Description

The Jōgakura Bridge is a and

that carries National Route 394 at a height of above Jōgakura Creek. The bridge's main span has a length of . It is equipped with two meter-wide sidewalks on each side of the bridge. It is the longest deck arch bridge in Japan. The bridge is known as tourist destination because the panoramic views it affords of the

. The Jōgakura Bridge becomes especially crowded with tourists when the surrounding Siebold's beech forests begin to change color during autumn.

History

Jōgakura Bridge was opened to traffic on 27 October 1995, replacing an older bridge that was heavily impacted by the rapid deterioration of the columnar jointed

andesite Andesite () is a volcanic rock of intermediate composition. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between silica-poor basalt and silica-rich rhyolite. It is fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic in texture, and is composed predomi ...

rock that it was built on. The total cost of its construction was 87 billion yen.

Suicides

The bridge's height makes it a target for

jumpers Jumper or Jumpers may refer to: Clothing * Jumper (sweater), a long-sleeve article of clothing; also called a top, pullover, or sweater **A waist-length top garment of dense wool, part of the Royal Navy uniform and the uniform of the United Stat ...

. In the event of someone jumping from the bridge, the approaches to the bridge are closed to traffic while helicopter teams attempt to recover the jumper from the valley below. Some blame

paranormal activity Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Nota ...

for the suicides, claiming that the bridge and its surroundings are haunted by the spirits of the troops that died in the

Hakkōda Mountains incident The occurred on January 23, 1902, when a group of Imperial Japanese Army soldiers became lost in a blizzard on the Hakkōda Mountains in Aomori Prefecture in northern Honshu, Japan, en route to Tashiro Hot Spring located in the Hakkōda Mountain ...

and that they pull or compel visitors off the bridge, usually at night.

References

External links

*
Jōgakura Bridge traffic web camera
{{Authority control Arch bridges in Japan Bridges completed in 1995 Tourist attractions in Aomori Prefecture Bridges in Aomori Prefecture Roads in Aomori Prefecture Aomori (city) 1995 establishments in Japan