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A nickname that comes with an argument
Pittsburgh calls itself the City of Bridges, and locals say the nickname is earned. The city’s rivers and steep hills force roads to hop over gaps nonstop. You can feel it the minute you start driving.
The fun part is that the bridge number is not settled. People toss around one big “official” count, then someone else pulls out a different list. In Pittsburgh, even a bridge fact turns into a debate.
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The famous 446 number
The most quoted number is 446 bridges inside Pittsburgh city limits. That figure came from a widely cited 2006 count and got repeated everywhere. It is the number people use when they want Pittsburgh to “beat” Venice.
Locals love saying it because it sounds unreal. Visitors hear it and start looking for bridges like it’s a scavenger hunt. Then the follow-up question hits fast. What exactly counts as a bridge?
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Definitions change the scoreboard
The bridge argument is mostly a definition fight. Some lists include road, rail, and pedestrian bridges altogether. Other lists try to separate big spans from small crossings and ramps…