Puente La Amistad de Taiwán (
English: "Taiwan Friendship Bridge") spans the
Tempisque River, on
National Route 18, in
Guanacaste, northern
Costa Rica
Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...
. Although generally known as a
cable-stayed bridge, it is really a hybrid bridge composed of a cable-stayed span and a pillar-supported bridge. The cable-stayed section has two spans of 170 and 90 metres, supported by an 80-metre-high pylon. The total length of the bridge is 780 metres with eight supporting pillars and the pylon. The bridge was completed in
2003.
The bridge was financed and designed by
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
and built primarily by the Taiwanese company
MAA, with participation of Costa Rican engineers and workers. It has a particular importance for the province of Guanacaste for it facilitates transit from the capital city of
San José. Prior to the construction of the bridge, this route required the use of ferries to cross the
Tempisque River, or long alternate land routes.
Recent Costa Rican studies have found some problems in the structure that have required increased maintenance.
The bridge has been known colloquially as ''Puente de la Apuñalada'' (Back stab Bridge) since former Costa Rican President
Óscar Arias cut off relations with Taiwan in favour of China.
Puente La Amistad was damaged on 5 September 2012 by the
2012 Costa Rica earthquake.
Two dead, dozens injured following powerful quake in Costa Rica
''The Tico Times'', 5 September 2012.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Puente La Amistad de Taiwan
Bridges in Costa Rica
Cable-stayed bridges
Bridges completed in 2003
Buildings and structures in Guanacaste Province