The Yanghwa Bridge is an eight lane bridge spanning the Han River

Han River (Korea)

The Han River is a major river in South Korea and the fourth longest river on the Korean peninsula after the Amnok, Duman, and Nakdong rivers. It is formed by the confluence of the Namhan River , which originates in Mount Daedeok, and the Bukhan River , which originates on the slopes of Mount...

 in Seoul

Seoul

Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...

. The bridge connects Mapo-gu

Mapo-gu

Mapo-gu is a gu, or district, within Seoul, South Korea. It lies northwest of the Han River. Several universities and government buildings are located here. Mapo is especially well-known for the Hongdae club district around Hongik University. Seoul Metropolitan Subway Line 1, Line 5, and Line 6...

 on the north side of the river to Yeongdeungpo-gu

Yeongdeungpo-gu

Yeongdeungpo-gu is an administrative district in southwest Seoul, South Korea. Although the origin of the name is uncertain, the first two syllables are thought to be from "yeongdeung" or "divine ascent", a shamanic rite. The third syllable is "po", representing water , referring to the...

 on the south side of the river. The bridge is buttressed by the eastern end of the island of Seonyudo, home to Seonyudo Park (선유도공원).

The bridge is a combination of two bridges: the old bridge, originally called the "Second Han River Bridge" (제2한강교), completed in 1965; and the new bridge, completed in 1982. The old bridge was the first bridge built by Korean technology after independence in 1945

Gwangbokjeol

Gwangbokjeol, celebrated annually on August 15, is one of the Public holidays in South Korea. It commemorates Victory over Japan Day, which liberated Korea from colonial rule...

 and served as the gateway from Seoul to the west coast. Due to increasing traffic, construction for an expansion started in 1979 and the new eight lane bridge was completed in February 1982.

The old bridge's upper structure has a width of 18.0m, length 1,053m and is composed of steel plate girders

Plate girder bridge

A plate girder bridge is a bridge supported by two or more plate girders. The plate girders are typically I-beams made up from separate structural steel plates , which are welded or, in older bridges, bolted or riveted together to form the vertical web and horizontal flanges of the beam...

 and concrete box girders

Box girder bridge

A box girder bridge is a bridge in which the main beams comprise girders in the shape of a hollow box. The box girder normally comprises either prestressed concrete, structural steel, or a composite of steel and reinforced concrete. The box is typically rectangular or trapezoidal in cross-section...

. The new bridge has a width of 16.1m, length 1,053m and is a steel plate girder bridge. The lower structure has an open caisson well foundation

Caisson (engineering)

In geotechnical engineering, a caisson is a retaining, watertight structure used, for example, to work on the foundations of a bridge pier, for the construction of a concrete dam, or for the repair of ships. These are constructed such that the water can be pumped out, keeping the working...

.

The bridge went through repairs and renovations in 1996 and reopened in April 2002 with additional ramps. As of February 2010, the bridge is once again going through renovations by widening the space between bridge posts to allow 5000t ships to pass.