Ever looked at a map of New Zealand and wondered—why isn’t there a bridge between the North and South Islands? They’re not that far apart… so what’s the holdup? Is it secret sea monsters? Wild weather? Or something even weirder? Hit play to dive into the surprising reasons behind this missing mega-bridge and find out what’s really going on beneath the waves. You’ll never look at the Cook Strait the same way again. Credit: mhowardchoran / YouTube CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/: HZMB route: by Kellykaneshiro, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HZMB_route.svg Allplan Bridge: by Michał Skwarczek, https://skfb.ly/6SoRq Cargo ship: by hungry_drifter, https://skfb.ly/opunK Earth: by Akshat, https://skfb.ly/6TwGG Plane: by Noah, https://skfb.ly/ooCMo Star Ferry: by chrisw225, https://skfb.ly/6TJxF Animation is created by Bright Side.
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00:00In Asia, there's a bridge that is way longer than you'd think should even be possible.
00:05The HZMB stretches 34 miles over open water, which makes it the longest sea bridge in the world.
00:12So if something this massive can make it across rough waters,
00:16why can't New Zealand just build a bridge between its two main islands?
00:20After all, we're talking about a distance of just 14 miles.
00:24And a bridge like that could seriously change life for both locals and tourists.
00:30People could just hop in a car and drive from Wellington to Picton.
00:33No more ferry hassles, no more drawn-out trips.
00:36Just one epic road journey with ocean views on both sides.
00:41So what's stopping them?
00:43Well, turns out, everything.
00:45I mean, building a bridge there is technically possible,
00:48but there are a couple reasons why experts are like, hmm, maybe not.
00:53Let's start with the obvious, the distance.
00:56The North Island and the South Island are separated by Cook Strait.
01:00Like I said, it's 14 miles wide at its narrowest point.
01:04That's not much, true.
01:06Plus, we've got the HZMB bridge, proving that, yep, it is technically possible to build a bridge over the sea to cover that distance.
01:14But we can't ignore the fact that New Zealand's geography is, well, a whole different ballgame.
01:21Cook Strait isn't exactly a calm, friendly stretch of water.
01:24Here, it's deep, really deep.
01:27Parts of it drop to about 10,000 feet.
01:30That's like stacking seven Empire State buildings on top of each other.
01:34It's also a rough, moody stretch of ocean that loves tossing around ships like rubber ducks.
01:40In fact, quite a few have been wrecked in Cook Strait.
01:43And sadly, many lives were lost.
01:47You don't have to worry about it so much, though, as the worst accidents happened a long time ago.
01:53The ships and ferries that cross it today are much safer.
01:56Even so, it'd be pretty hard to avoid getting seasick while crossing it.
02:00Things get even messier below the surface.
02:04The seafloor over there is uneven and unpredictable.
02:08What happens is that Cook Strait has opposing tides at each end, one where it meets the Tasman Sea and the other where it joins the Pacific Ocean.
02:17And they simply don't move together like you might expect.
02:21When the tide is high on one side, it's low on the other, and they're totally out of sync.
02:26So all that water rushes back and forth through the Strait to balance things out, creating some really strong and messy currents in the middle.
02:35Then, there's the weather.
02:37Cook Strait isn't just windy.
02:39It's probably one of the windiest places in the Southern Hemisphere.
02:43That's because it's located right in the middle of one of New Zealand's three big wind tunnels.
02:49Basically, there are places where the wind doesn't just come and go quickly.
02:53It sticks around, blowing hard for most of the year.
02:57And all of this happens because of something called the Roaring Forties.
03:01That's the name for the latitude band between 40 and 50 degrees south of the equator, where strong, persistent, westerly winds are pretty common.
03:11Unlike the Northern Hemisphere, which has a lot of land at this latitude, the Southern Hemisphere is mostly ocean with just a few land masses.
03:20Like New Zealand's South Island, Tasmania, and the southern tip of South America.
03:26So, these winds go wild because there's nothing to slow them down, and they just keep picking up speed.
03:33The gusts there can reach up to 150 miles per hour.
03:38So, imagine trying to cross a bridge in a car when the wind is actively pushing against you.
03:43That's not just unpleasant. It's super dangerous.
03:47Drivers can easily lose control of their cars with the wind pushing them sideways.
03:52And, of course, that can lead to countless serious accidents.
03:56Now, let's talk about earthquakes.
03:59New Zealand sits right on the boundary of two massive tectonic plates, the Indo-Australian and Pacific plates.
04:06It's basically in the middle of a collision zone.
04:09And about 14,000 earthquakes happen in and around the country every year.
04:15Of those, only about 200 are big enough to be felt.
04:20Still, building a massive bridge under these conditions would require some serious genius-level engineering.
04:26With all that in mind, we can safely say that the whole bridge idea is off the table.
04:32But, how about an underwater tunnel?
04:37Yep, that could work.
04:40It could be a great solution, actually.
04:42No wind, no bad weather, and no earthquakes to deal with.
04:46There are a bunch of other advantages, too.
04:50First, it would dramatically reduce travel time.
04:52Cutting down the three- to four-hour sailing trip between the North and South Islands.
04:57That same journey would probably only take about 40 minutes.
05:02Then, people wouldn't have to stress about all the ferry cancellations and delays because of bad weather.
05:08And most importantly, it's doable.
05:10I mean, look at the Channel Tunnel.
05:13It's an undersea tunnel connecting southern England and northern France.
05:16Japan did something similar with the Seikan Tunnel, which connects the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido.
05:23They are both huge projects, serving pretty much the same purpose.
05:28So, why on earth isn't New Zealand already building this tunnel?
05:33Well, for the same reason we don't all live in luxury treehouses with personal robots.
05:38Money.
05:38Estimates vary, but some experts think a project like this could cost anywhere from 10 to 20 billion dollars.
05:47To cover that kind of cost, they'd probably need to charge tolls for the next hundred years.
05:52And trust me, those tolls wouldn't be cheap.
05:55Other experts think it could actually cost more than that.
05:59Because, you see, we have to consider all the extra infrastructure.
06:02The narrowest point of Cook Strait is between the North Island and Arapoa Island.
06:07That's one of the long, mountainous regions in the Marlborough Sounds, which is pretty remote.
06:13So, it's not just about the cost of the bridge or tunnel itself.
06:17It's also the access roads, safety systems, maintenance, and evacuation plans.
06:22You can't just build a huge underwater tunnel and not plan for the occasional emergencies.
06:28And what would it actually be used for?
06:30Sure, there are people who travel between the islands.
06:33About a million passengers take the ferry every year.
06:37But that's not exactly the kind of traffic that justifies the most expensive infrastructure project in the country's history.
06:44Earlier, we talked about how England and Japan have similar underwater tunnels.
06:49But there's something to consider.
06:51The United Kingdom has a population of 69 million.
06:54Japan has even more, with around 123 million people.
07:00And in New Zealand, they've only got 5 million residents to pay for this project.
07:05So, could they have a tunnel under Cook Strait?
07:08Sure, they could.
07:09Should they?
07:10Oh, probably not.
07:13If you don't want to fly, the only other way to travel between the islands is by ferry.
07:18It's not ideal, but hey, it works.
07:20New Zealand has a total of 5 ships that transport people and vehicles across the islands.
07:26For tourists, who aren't in a rush, it's perfect.
07:30You can cross the islands while taking in some of the most stunning views and spotting amazing wildlife.
07:35You'll start your trip in Wellington, and right from there, you'll see the rugged North Island coastline as you head out into open water.
07:43You might see different seabirds like gulls and terns, and as you get closer to the South Island, you might spot some gannets.
07:51If you're lucky, you could also catch a glimpse of the seal colonies off the coast.
07:55During the last hour of the trip, the ferry will slow down, giving you plenty of time to enjoy the green hills and calm waters.
08:04You will also approach Queen Charlotte Sound, a spot known for its wildlife.
08:10So keep an eye out for orcas, playful dolphins, and even penguins.
08:14Honestly, having a ferry instead of a tunnel might not be so bad after all.
08:22That's it for today.
08:23So hey, if you pacified your curiosity, then give the video a like and share it with your friends.
08:28Or if you want more, just click on these videos and stay on the bright side.
