Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge ceremony was held on 29 May 2013. The bridge was opened to traffic on 26 August 2016. At , the bridge is one of the tallest bridges in the world. It is, after the Millau Viaduct, the second-tallest bridge in the world of any type. The bridge is also one of the world's widest suspension bridges, at wide. The bridge is part of the projected Northern Marmara Motorway (), which will bypass urban areas of Istanbul in the north connecting Kınalı, Silivri in the west and Paşaköy, Hendek in the east. The bridge is in length with a main span
Orthotropic deck superstructure allowed bridge launching from both ends of the Millau Viaduct. The Akashi Kaikyō Bridge's orthotropic deck allowed the Japanese to build the longest span at about , or 50% longer than the Golden Gate Bridge. Orthotropic decks permit a very shallow deck depth which reduces the steepness of approach gradients and hence their costs. The form is also widely used on bascule and other moveable bridges where significant savings in the cost of the mechanical elements can be made where a lighter deck is used. The El Ferdan Railway Bridge across the Suez Canal of Egypt is the record