World's tallest and longest glass bridge closes after just two weeks

A 430-metre-long glass bridge in China has closed after just 13 days after opening due to being "overwhelmed" by visitors. 

The Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon Glass Bridge by Tel Aviv architect Haim Dotan is believed to be the world's longest and tallest glass pedestrian bridge.

Thousands flocked to the attraction when it opened on 20 August 2016, but less than two weeks later its popularity has led to its closure.

The bridge is designed to hold up to 800 people and receive up to 8,000 visitors in a day, however demand has far outstripped capacity.

"We're overwhelmed by the volume of visitors," a spokesperson from the Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon's marketing department told CNN.

The spokesperson said that 80,000 visitors had attempted to visit the bridge each day, leading to its closure for improvement works on 2 September 2016.

There are no reports of when the attraction will reopen.

The Zhangjiajie Grand Canyon Glass Bridge spans a deep canyon in China's Zhangjiajie National Forest Park. It rests on the edge of two cliffs and is suspended 300 metres above the ground by stay cables.

Glass panels are set into its steel-framed walkway, giving visitors vertigo-inducing views and photo opportunities of the canyon below.

Undulating handrails line edges of the glazed walkway, which narrows towards the centre of the canyon to create an exaggerated perspective.

There were plans for the bridge to become the launch point for the world's highest bungee jump and a venue for runway shows prior to its closure.

Haim Dotan, who set up his Tel Aviv practice in 1990, is the latest in a string of architects and designers incorporating glass into the bases of bridging structures.

Recently there have also been plans for several glass-bottomed swimming pools – one in London linking two residential towers and another in India's Gujarat state.

All images are copyright Getty Images and used with permission.