... consists of a bridge, a tunnel and an articifial island that was created to connect the two. The island is called Peperholm, in reference to the nearby island of Saltholm. The original plan was for the crossing to go via Saltholm, but this was abandoned because of the impact that it would have had on the island's ecology. Peperholm belongs to Denmark (as does Saltholm).
The tunnel connects the Danish island of Amager (the site of Kastrup Airport, which serves Copenhagen) to Peperholm, and the bridge runs on from there to Sweden.
According to Wikipedia, a bridge across the entire strait "would have interfered with obstacle–free zones around Kastrup Airport." The tunnel also allows ships to pass; the bridge would be too low for many ships, and to build the platform any higher would have complicated the passage of trains.
The bridge is approximately 5 miles (8 km) long, and the tunnel is 2.5 miles (4 km). Peperholm is also about 2.5 miles long, and has an area of 0.5 square miles (1.3 km2).
© Macclesfield Quiz League 2022