The city of Odense [ˈoð̞ˀn̩sə] [Danish pronunciation] is the third largest city in Denmark. Odense city has 158,453 inhabitants, as of January 1, 2007, and is the capital of the island of Funen. It is the seat of Odense Municipality and was the seat of Odense County until 1970, and Funen County from 1970 until January 1, 2007 when the county became part of Region Syddanmark. The city lies close to Odense Fjord on the Odense River (Odense Å). Its railway station lies on the route between Copenhagen and Jutland, the peninsular mainland. A 7.5 metre (25 ft.) deep canal, dug from 1796 to 1806, gives access to the town from the fjord. Accessibility to Odense was greatly increased when the ferry service between the two main Danish islands, Zealand and Funen, was replaced by the Great Belt Bridge - opened in 1997 for rail traffic, 1998 for road traffic. The bridge is the second longest suspension bridge in the world. Its construction greatly cut transportation time between Odense and the Danish capital, Copenhagen. Copenhagen can now be reached by trains from Odense in 1 hour and 15 minutes.