{{Infobox bridge | bridge_name = Sungai Klang Bridge | image = File:Kota Bridge - panoramio.jpg | official_name = Kota Bridge, Klang | native_name = Jambatan Kota, Klang | locale = [[Malaysia Federal Route 2|Federal Route 2]] [[Malaysia Federal Route 5|Federal Route 5]] [[Jalan Jambatan Kota]] | carries = [[Motor vehicles]], [[Pedestrians]] | crosses = [[Klang River]] | mainspan = {{convert|1,438|ft|m}} | length = | width = {{convert|22|ft|m}} | open = 1961 | maint = [[Malaysian Public Works Department]] (JKR) Klang<br>Majlis Perbandaran Klang (MPKlang) | design = [[Double-deck bridge|Double-decked]] [[truss girder]] | designer = [[Government of Malaysia]]<br>[[Malaysian Public Works Department]] (JKR) | builder = [[Malaysian Public Works Department]] (JKR) }}
'''Kota Bridge, Klang''' or '''Jambatan Kota, Klang''' is the first double-decked bridge in [[Malaysia]]. It is located over the [[Klang River]] in the city of [[Klang (city)|Klang]], [[Selangor]]. The longer upper deck was built for motorised vehicle traffic, while the shorter lower deck was used for pedestrians and bicycles only. The bridge originally had a span of {{convert|1,438|ft|m}}, but part of the bridge has been removed to allow for the construction of a new bridge alongside it. The upper deck has been converted to a public space and no longer permits automobile traffic, but the lower deck is still open to pedestrians, bicycles and motorcycles.
==History== A bridge, the Belfield Bridge, originally served the town of Klang, but was bombed during the [[Japanese occupation of Malaya|Japanese invasion]] in the [[Second World War]]. After the war, three bridges were used temporarily to cross the river as the Belfield Bridge could not be repaired. In 1951, Crown Agents were sent from London to study the feasibility of constructing a new permanent bridge over the Klang River, from which the idea of a double-decked bridge emerged.<ref name=chan /> The bridge was constructed between 1958 and 1960 and it was a reinforced steel [[truss girder]] bridge.<ref name=nst>{{cite news|title=Kota Bridge can be a heritage site|url=https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2019/11/538432/kota-bridge-can-be-heritage-site|publisher=New Straits Times|date=14 November 2019|author=Dawn Chan|accessdate=20 December 2019}}</ref> It was constructed by [[Dorman Long]] Engineering Limited, the company that was also responsible for building the [[Sydney Harbour Bridge]] in 1932, with piling works by Gammon Messrs (Malaya) Ltd. Its cost was estimated to be £820,000 in 1956.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HXwjAQAAMAAJ&q=Dorman+Long+kota+bridge |title= Work to Start on £820,000 Bridge |journal=Highways and Bridges and Engineering Works|volume= 24|page=87|date= 1956 }}</ref><ref name=chan /> The bridge had a total length of {{convert|1,438|ft|m}} including approaches with a central span of {{convert|282|ft|m}}. The bridge was first launched in 1959 by the late [[Sultan of Selangor]], [[Hisamuddin of Selangor|Sultan Hisamuddin Alam Shah]]. It was originally intended to be named Alam Shah Bridge after the sultan, but Sultan Hisamuddin decided two weeks before opening that it should be called Kota Bridge ("''kota''" means "city") after the Bukit Kota Palace.<ref name=chan />
The bridge was completed in 1960 and officially opened in 1961 by [[Sultan Salahuddin|Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah]] in conjunction with his coronation as the ninth Sultan of Selangor.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thestar.com.my/news/community/2008/01/23/kota-bridge-declared-structurally-deficient |title=Kota Bridge declared structurally deficient |author=Edward Rajendra |work=The Star |date= 23 January 2008 }}</ref> Due to increasing traffic, two new bridges were built, the first one built near the Kota Bridge. In the 1990s, due to the high capacity traffic with the upgrading of the [[Federal Highway (Malaysia)|Federal Highway Route]] (Klang - Kuala Lumpur) into six lane carriageway toll highway, a further bridge was constructed directly next to Kota Bridge from 1991 to 1993. The double-decked bridge was closed to traffic and the new concrete bridge with six lane carriageway was built beside the original double-decked bridge. The north end of the Kota Bridge was removed to allow the new bridge to be built, but about 300m of the bridge remained.<ref name=chan>{{cite news|title=Klang's priceless Kota Bridge|url=https://www.nst.com.my/news/exclusive/2019/11/541067/klangs-priceless-kota-bridge|publisher=New Straits Times|date=22 November 2019|author=Dawn Chan|accessdate=20 December 2019}}</ref>
==Usage== [[File:Sunset 2 Pasar Jawa Mosque.JPG|thumb|View from upper deck of bridge, now serving as a public space]] The bottom deck is a pedestrian walkway bridge while the top deck was originally used as a motor vehicle bridge. The top deck has been closed to traffic when a new bridge was built alongside it, while the bottom deck continues to be used as a bridge for pedestrians, bicycles and motorcycles. In the 1990s, the top deck of bridge was renovated into public space called Dataran Jambatan Kota (Kota Bridge Square).{{CN|date=December 2019}}
The bridge has been used a film location for the Malaysian production ''[[Sangkar]]'' as well as for commercials. An attempt to have the bridge gazetted as a national heritage site was launched in 2019.<ref name=nst />
==See also== *[[Malaysia Federal Route 2|Federal Route 2]]
==References== {{reflist}}
[[Category:Bridges completed in 1960]] [[Category:Bridges in Selangor]]