Synthesis of bridges Concrete bridges in Europe

Transcription

European Council of Civil Engineers Working Group
250 years of Civil Engineering Heritage in Europe
BRIDGES IN EUROPE
Presented at ECCE Athens meeting (October 2007)
January 2008
Synthesis of ECCE Members contributions.
HKAIG Croatia, CNISF France, ECCE German Group, ACEG Greece,
HCE Hungary, CNI Italy, LSIS Lithuania, PZITB Poland, OE
Portugal, UAICR Romania, TCCE Turkey, ICE United Kingdom
Georges Pilot
Civil Engineering Committee
Synthesis of bridges
Stone bridges in Europe (1/4)
Gabriel Bridge. Blois (Loir et Cher). France. 1724.
This stone bridge is built on the Loire river, for the “Route Nationale 10”, the only one bridge for
long time in the City of Blois. It is 283 m long, comprising 11 spans, whose length varies from
16,55m to 26,30 m.
This bridge is the first one of a series of bridges on the Loire River, using a new vault scaffolding
technology (also applied for Cessart Bridge in Saumur). In Gabriel bridge, 2 intermediate columns
are larger than the others, playing the role of local abutments. Several vaults were destroyed during
wars, then reconstructed.
Engineers: Jacques V Gabriel (First Engineer of the « Corps des Ponts et Chaussées », 1716), Jean Baptiste
de Régemortes
Picture : Georges Pilot
Concorde Bridge. Paris. France. 1790.
This road bridge on the Seine river is 137 m long, 16m large, enlarged until 35 m later on (1931). It
comprises 5 circular arches, 20 to 23 m large. It represents the advanced concepts developed by
Jean-Rodolphe Perronet in matter of stone bridges construction. Instead to consider that each pile
must work as an arch abutment and must be stable by itself, all arches are built at the same time,
using scaffoldings for all arches. This practice allowed to introduce a better lowering. It is to be
noted that this bridge was built using stones from “La Bastille” jail.
Engineer: Jean-Rodolphe Perronet (First Director of “Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées”, 1747)
www.lcpc.fr
Trizolos Bridge. 19th Century. Greece.
It is an one span masonry arch bridge. Its span is about 30m long 15m high. The width of the deck is about 2.00 m
and 0.80m thick. The bridge is founded on solid rock.
It is a representative masonry arch bridge. Its structural form was very popular that period.
We also know from the history, that this type of masonry arch bridges were constructed by a group of technicians that
were specialized and had a lot of advantages in the local societies.
General references The stone bridge in Thessalia (in Greek)
ECCE Working Group. 250 years of civil engineering heritage in Europe
Synthesis prepared at CNISF (France). Georges Pilot. October 2007
Pont de Navilly. Navilly Bridge. (Saône et Loire) France. 1790
This road arc bridge is 156 m long, with a main span 25,25 m long.
It is representative of the “Burgundy School of stone bridges, leaded by E.M. Gauthey.
(E.M Gauthey was designer of many bridges in Burgundy, expert for the construction of The
Panthéon in Paris, one of the designers of the Centre Canal, and author of a “Traité de
construction des ponts” referring to 1300 bridges in Europe).
Designer: Emiland-Marie. Gauthey
www.structurae.de °
Picture : Jacques Mossot°
Pont de Gignac. Gignac Bridge . (Hérault), France. 1810.
www.planete-tp.com
This elegant road bridge is built on the Hérault River. It is representative of the “Languedoc School of
stone bridges” leaded by B. Garipuy. It is 174,76 m long, comprising 3 stone arches respectively 25,97 ,
50,72 and 25,97 m long. One of the main problems was the construction of the foundations, protected by
clay cofferdams.
This bridge location was used long time ago for road traffic, at the Roman period, then, later on as part of
the Royal Montpellier-Paris Road.
Engineers: Bertrand Garipuy and Bertrand Garipuy Junior,
www.struturae.de °
http://perso.wanadoo.fr/laure.gigou
Picture : Nicolas Janberg °
Pont de Pierre. Bordeaux (Gironde). France. 1822.
This bridge supports the important National Road 10, from Paris to Bordeaux, on the way to Spain:
then it was considered for a long time as one of the most important bridges in France.
It is 487m long, built with 17 spans with an circular arc profile. The structure is in stone and the
facing in bricks.
As a point of recent industrial event, it is to be noted that this bridge should have been an obstacle
for transfer, by boat, of fuselage elements of the Airbus A 380 aircraft. Special boats are used for
that…at low level tide!
Engineers: Jean-Baptiste Billaudel, Claude Deschamps
Picture : Jean-Claude Marché
Val-Fleury Railroad viaduct. Meudon (Hauts de Seine). France. 1840
This railroad arch bridge is built on the Arthelon River valley, on the railroad line Paris-Versailles, the first
commercial railway line in France .
It is 142,70 m long, and 36 m high. It comprises 2 levels with 7 arches 10,70 m long each.
In 1936, on the opportunity of traffic increase, this bridge was enlarged.
Engineers: MM Polonceau and Payen
Railroad viaduct. Chaumont (Haute-Marne), France. 1856
www.planete-tp.com
This railroad bridge is built on the Suize River valley, for the line Paris-Bâle.
It is 600 m long, 22 m high with 50 spans.
This special arch bridge comprises 3 levels:
- the first one acts as a pedestrian bridge,
- the second one is used for technical services,
- the third one supports the railway.
Engineers: Eugène Decomble, M. Zeiller
Picture : Jacques Mossot °
Templa Bridge. Greece. (19th Century)
www.planete-tp.com
The Templa bridge is a representative
three masonry arch bridge in Greece.
The span of the main arch is 24 m and there are two relieving arches at both sides.
Its foundation is on solid lime stone the width of the deck is about 4.00 m.
Antoinette Bridge. Villeneuve sur Agoût (Tarn). France . 1884.
This railroad arch bridge is a stone bridge, 89 m long, included the main span, 47m long.
It is a typical work designed following Paul Séjourné concepts: the weight of stone bridges is reduced when using
minor arches constructed each side of the main arch.
Sejourné concepts for stone bridges mark the peak for this style of construction in France.
Engineer: Paul Séjourné
www.planete.com°
Photo : Marcel Prade °
Fontpédrouse Bridge. (Pyrénées Orientales). France. 1908.
This spectacular bridge is one of the most remarkable works on the railways line “Le train jaune”
(always under function) running between Villeneuve-de-Conflent and La Tour de Carol.
This stone arch bridge comprises 2 levels.
It is 237 m long, with a main span 30 m long.
Picture : Guy Sauvage (SNCF, French railways)
« Calanque des eaux salées » Bridge. (Bouches-du-Rhône). France. 1915.
This stone bridge is part of the railway line Miramas-L’Estaque (Marseille),built in a mountainous area (it
comprises 48 big works, 22 bridges and viaducts, 26 tunnels).
The bridge is 143 m long, including an arch 50 m long.
Iron bridges in Europe (1/2)
Arcole Bridge. Paris, France. 1854.
This iron road bridge is built on the Seine river in Paris
It is an arch bridge, 80 m long, composed of 14 parallel arches. The deck is connected to the arches through
triangulation bars.
Movements occured in this bridge in 1884, then the structure was reinforced with metal trusses.
Engineer: Alphonse Oudry Nicolas Cadiat
www.lcpc.fr
Bordeaux Saint-Jean Railways bridge. France. 1860
This iron railways bridge (named “La passerelle”) built on the Garonne river is
an important element of the major railway line Paris-Bordeaux.
It is 504 m long, constructed in wrought iron and supported by cast iron columns.
It is interesting to note that it was built under the authority of Gustave Eiffel.
Engineers: Stanislas de Laroche-Tolay, M. Bommard, Paul Régnauld, Gustave Eiffel.
Contractor : Compagnie générale de matériel de chemin de fer
Picture : Guy Sauvage SNCF (French railways)
Le Busseau railways viaduct. France. 1863
This railways bridge is located on the Montluçon-Saint-Sulpice line.
It is a wrought iron truss bridge, 338m long, (comprising 6 spans: one is 45 m long, four are
50m long each, one is 41 m long), and 56 m high, with wrought iron columns on masonry
bases. Access bridges comprise stone viaducts.
This viaduct is the “prototype” of a series of five similar viaducts on the Montluçon-Gannat
line: La Bouble (1868), Neuvial (1868), Le Belon (1869), Rouzat (1869). (Rouzat and
Neuvial bridges are historical monuments). Also the La Tardes viaduct (1884) on the
Bourges- Aurillac line.
Engineers: Wilhelm Nördling, Geoffoy. F. Lloyd
Contractors: Etablisements Cail, Fives-Lille
Maria Pia bridge, Porto. Portugal. 1877
This iron bridge, built on the Douro river, is a railways bridge.
It is 563 m long, with an exceptional arch 160 m long, 61,20 m high.
This bridge is a technology break, so it was the model of the Garabit viaduct in France
Engineers: Gustave Eiffel, Théophile Seyrig
Contractor: Eiffel et Compagnie.
Garabit railways Viaduct. France. 1884
One of the master pieces associated to Gustave Eiffel, in matter of bridges, this
work, designed by Maurice Koechlin, is built on the railway line Saint-FlourMarvejols, Centre of France. It was designed in 1877 by Léon Boyer.
The iron bridge is crossing the Truyère valley, 565m long, 125 m high. The
whole work is in steel. The main part of the bridge is an arch with a parabolic
profile, 165 m long, considered, at this time as an incredible audacity.
The deck is supported by metallic pylons, 80 m high, bearing on masonry
abutments.
Engineers: Maurice Koechlin, Léon Boyer, Gustave Eiffel
Picture Guy Sauvage (CNISF, French railways)
Arcole Bridge. Paris, France. 1854.
This iron road bridge is built on the Seine river in Paris
It is an arch bridge, 80 m long, composed of 14 parallel arches. The deck is connected to the arches through
triangulation bars.
Movements occured in this bridge in 1884, then the structure was reinforced with metal trusses.
Engineer: Alphonse Oudry Nicolas Cadiat
www.lcpc.fr
Bordeaux Saint-Jean Railways bridge. France. 1860
This iron railways bridge (named “La passerelle”) built on the Garonne river is
an important element of the major railway line Paris-Bordeaux.
It is 504 m long, constructed in wrought iron and supported by cast iron columns.
It is interesting to note that it was built under the authority of Gustave Eiffel.
Engineers: Stanislas de Laroche-Tolay, M. Bommard, Paul Régnauld, Gustave Eiffel.
Contractor : Compagnie générale de matériel de chemin de fer
Le Busseau railways viaduct. France. 1863
This railways bridge is located on the Montluçon-Saint-Sulpice line.
It is a wrought iron truss bridge, 338m long, (comprising 6 spans: one is 45 m long, four are
50m long each, one is 41 m long), and 56 m high, with wrought iron columns on masonry
bases. Access bridges comprise stone viaducts.
This viaduct is the “prototype” of a series of five similar viaducts on the Montluçon-Gannat
line: La Bouble (1868), Neuvial (1868), Le Belon (1869), Rouzat (1869). (Rouzat and
Neuvial bridges are historical monuments). Also the La Tardes viaduct (1884) on the
Bourges- Aurillac line.
Engineers: Wilhelm Nördling, Geoffoy. F. Lloyd
Contractors: Etablisements Cail, Fives-Lille
Maria Pia bridge, Porto. Portugal. 1877
This iron bridge, built on the Douro river, is a railways bridge.
It is 563 m long, with an exceptional arch 160 m long, 61,20 m high.
This bridge is a technology break, so it was the model of the Garabit viaduct in France
Engineers: Gustave Eiffel, Théophile Seyrig
Contractor: Eiffel et Compagnie.
Garabit railways Viaduct. France. 1884
One of the master pieces associated to Gustave Eiffel, in matter of bridges, this
work, designed by Maurice Koechlin, is built on the railway line Saint-FlourMarvejols, Centre of France. It was designed in 1877 by Léon Boyer.
The iron bridge is crossing the Truyère valley, 565m long, 125 m high. The
whole work is in steel. The main part of the bridge is an arch with a parabolic
profile, 165 m long, considered, at this time as an incredible audacity.
The deck is supported by metallic pylons, 80 m high, bearing on masonry
abutments.
Engineers: Maurice Koechlin, Léon Boyer, Gustave Eiffel
Picture Guy Sauvage (CNISF, French railways)
Steel bridges in Europe (1/9)
The Forth Railway Bridge.United Kingdom. 1890
The need for the bridge was a result of a quest by the railways for a shorter route to the north. At the
location of the bridge at Queensferry the Forth narrows to a channel little more than a mile wide, which
is divided into two by the island of Inchgarvie.
The superstructure of the bridge is basically three towers with cantilever arms on each side. The towers
are 330ft high above the granite pier foundations, and the cantilever arms are each 680ft long, projecting
outwards from the towers. The ends of the cantilevers over the river are linked by suspended spans of
350ft. Clearance for shipping is 150ft above high water.
The overall length of the bridge is 8,296ft, including main spans1,710ft, using 54,160 tons of steel.
Engineers: Sir John Fowler and Benjamin Baker Contractor: Tancred, Arrol & Co ( William Arrol)
„Blaues Wunder“ bridge, Dresden. Germany. 1893
It is a cantilever truss bridge, with three hinges, in wrough iron/steel (?).
The 270.2 m long bridge with a main span of 146.7 m crosses the Elbe without supports between the Loschwitz and
Blasewitz districts.
It was built 1891 –93 to designs by bridge builder Claus Köpcke as a “rigid suspension bridge”.
It was dubbed the “blue wonder” because of its striking design and the blue colour it adopted after the “chrome
yellow” pigment in the bridge`s green paint gradually.
Architect: Claus Köpcke
www.dresden-blaues-wunder-de
Photograph: Michael Fehlauer, Köln, 2005
Cernavodă Bridge. Romania. 1895.
Was the longest bridge in continental Europe at that time. 5200 tons of soft steel were used for the
superstructure and 113 tons of hard steel for the supports, and for the foundations – 1136 tons of steel for
the caissons and 42000 m3 of brickwork. The total length of the bridge is of 4088 m between the left
bank and the right one of the Danube valley. Applying of Saligny’s inventions were the novelties in this
field: the new system of console girders for the bridge superstructure and the use of the soft steel instead
of the puddled iron as building material for bridge floors.
Between 1970 and 1980, a second bridge was built, in parallel with the existing one, for a dual railway
and a motorway.
Alexandre III bridge. Paris. France. 1900
This steel bridge was constructed on the Seine river for the “Exposition Universelle” (World Fair)
organised in Paris in 1900.
It is 140 m long and 40 m large, including an arch 109 m long, comprising 15 parallel arcs with 3 hinges.
Its lowering, 1/17, was remarkable at this period. At the time of construction, a very innovative
construction process was used: the steel segments were smelted and moulded in a factory (located in Le
Creusot), then elements were bolted in situ.
This bridge shows very rich decorations which makes it one of the most famous in Paris. It is listed as an
historical monument
Engineers: Jean Résal and M. d’Alby
www.lcpc.fr
Le Viaur viaduct, Carmaux (Tarn). France. 1902
This bridge was built on the Viaur river, as a part of the railway line Carmaux-Rodez, constructed
for the regional development: the Carmaux basin was an important region for coal production.
It is 410 m long, with a very remarkable 220 m long central span (Garabit bridge central span is
“only” 165 m long).
Side spans are 95 m long. It is a cantilever bridge comprising an articulation in the middle of the
main span.
This bridge is register at the survey of the French Ministry of Culture.
Engineer: Paul-Joseph Bodin
Les Fades viaduct. France. 1909
This railways viaduct is part of the line Volvic-La Peyrouse.
The deck is a steel truss and the columns are in granite.
It is 470 m long, with spans respectively 116, 146,116 m long.
The deck, is 132,5 m above the river, supported by 92 m high columns, the highest in Europe for a very
long time.
Engineers: Emile Robert, Félix Vival
Contractor: Société française de construction métallique.
La Mulatière railroad Bridge. Lyon (Rhône). France . 1914.
This bridge is built on the Saône river and it is used by the railways line Lyon-Saint-Etienne.
It is located at the end, on Lyon side, of this precursor line which belongs to the “Saint-Etienne” network.
Engineer: Maurice Koechlin
Document : Jacques Mossot °
Lowicz bridge. Poland. 1929
It is the first welded steel road bridge in the world. The superstructure consists of two truss girders of 27
m span with steel deck. Welded truss joints shape was adopted from riveting technology. Bridge deck was
also welded. The steel is a Iow-carbon steel of 370-420 MPa in strength with allowable stresses of 98,1
MPa for girders and 81,5 MPa for deck. The structural elements were manufactured in workshop and
assembled at site by „K. Rudzki i S-ka" Company in collaboration with „Soudure Electrique Autogène"
from Brussels. In 1977 it was replaced by a new one. The old superstructure was moved 25 m upstream
the Sludia river for preservation as a monument of bridge technique.
Engineer: Pr Stefan Bryla.
Savski Bridge. Croatia. 1939
This bridge in Zagreb in Zagreb is technically one of the most important structures ever to be built in Croatia. The 9
m wide superstructure is supported on stone piers of the older bridge dating back to 1892. The bridge has four
continuous spans, approximately 55 m long. The structure consists in 2 plate girders with very thick flanches made
of poor quality steels, and reinforced concrete deck. The fact that the welding of thick flanches was carried out
superbly received a lot of attention worldwide. On-site testing upon bridge completion showed that the composite
action o of the concrete deck and steel structure was achieved. It is an important contribution to the development of
civil engineering structures in general.
Engineers: M. Frkovic, J. Erega
The Green bridge with sculptures. Lithuania. 1894/1952
It is known that the first wooden bridge was built around 1536. In 1739 the Great Duchy’s of Lithuania treasurer Solohub built
wooden bridge that was painted in green therefore people began to call it The Green Bridge.
In 1894 local authority decided to build metal bridge. In 1944 the metal bridge was destroyed. The contemporary bridge was
finished around 1952. In 1975-1978 The Green Bridge was repaired.
Length of the bridge – 102,9 m. Width – 24 m.
Engineer: Nikolaj Beleliubsky (1st metal bridge 1889);
Designer and Contractor of the contemporary bridge: “Projektstalkonstrukcija” (around 1950)
Bernardinu bridge. Lithuania.1880/1956
XIXth century metal bridge is 18,07 m long.
Main build of the bridge – 4 steel cross-sectioned riveted beams which span 17,40 m long cut. Width – 8,4 m.
As it was Bernardinu church and Bernardine abbeys for men and women by the bridge, bridge was named Bernardinu
bridge.
The contemporary bridge was finished around 1880. Around 1956 the bridge was reconstructed.
Engineer of the contemporary bridge: Levikis (1880)
Sloboda bridge. Croatia. 1959
The Sloboda (freedom) bridge is the central bridge in Zagreb, which helped spreading of the city to
the Sava river right bank. Special attention was given to aesthetically pleasing structure, also to
devise solutions that would prove adequate to accommodate traffic in the decades to come The
overall length of the bridge is 806 m, consisting in two 135 m approach viaducts, two large
abutments, of 71 m and 62 m in length, and the main 373 m long bridge structure. The central span
bridging the Sava river is a two-rib steel arch structure, It spans 100 m with a rise of only 7,36 m,
and has a maximum depth at springings of 1,30 m (1/87 of arch span). To support the arch thrust
large bocks os concrete were constructed and founded on caissons.
Designer: K. Tonkovic
Caronte Bridge. Martigues (Bouches du Rhône). France. 1972.
Caronte Bridge is a highway bridge which crosses the Caronte canal, close to Martigues
city, in the vicinity of Marseille.
It is a steel portal bridge, 875 m long, including a 300 m long main span.
Access bridges are built in concrete.
Contractors: CFE-Boussiron, Daydé, CFEM
Picture: Courtesy OTUA °. Paper from J. Barthellémy, J.C. Fourcriat, W. Hoorpah
°°
° OTUA : Office Technique pour l’utilisation de l’Acier. Paris
°° J. Barthellémy, J.C. Foucriat, W. Hoorpah. Les ponts en arc. Bulletin « ponts métalliques » N° 20 (2000)
° OTUA : Office Technique pour l’utilisation de l’Acier. Paris
°° J. Barthellémy, J.C. Foucriat, W. Hoorpah. Les ponts en arc. Bulletin « ponts métalliques » N° 20 (2000)
www.otua.org °
Viaduct Sfalassa. Bagnara Calabra (Calabria). Italy. 1972.
The viaduct Sfalassa connects the two sides of the Sfalassa cliff along the motorway A3 Salerno-Reggio
Calabria.
It is the longest metal frame bridge ever built. Completed in 1973, it is 893 meters long, 253 high from
the valley floor, and has a 360 meters span between its hinges.
The frame is divided into three spans (110 + 156 + 110 meters)
Designer/Engineer: Silvano Zorzi
Bridge over the river Piave in Caralte. Belluno (Veneto). Italy. 1981.
The bridge across the Piave River is part of what is today generally called the Cadore Viaduct,
which is composed by three viaducts and an orthotropic beamed arch type bridge with a 272
meters long span and deck divided into three spans 72, 128 and 72 meters long respectively. The
height from the valley floor is 200 meters.
Beyond the structural concept, the uniqueness of this project design was its assembling. Only four
big manoeuvres were carried out, reducing the bridge active joints to only three, one on the two
legs and one in the middle of the span.
Disigners/Engineers :Pietro and Giuseppe Matildi
Grand canal Bridge. Le Havre (Seine maritime). France. 1994.
Doc. road
Jean-Raphaël
This
bridgeLegallais
is part° of A 29 Highway, on Grand canal, Le Havre city.
It is a steel portal, 1.410 m long, including the main bridge with a 275 m central span
and 2 lateral spans, 107,5 m long each.
Contractors: Cimolai Costruzioni Metalliche, Torno
Picture : Jean-Raphaël Legallais °
Atatürk viaduct (Anatolia). Turkey. 1998
Atatürk Viaduct crosses over Olucak Valley on TAG (Tarsus-Adana-Gaziantep) Highway, an
important section of TEM (Trans European Motor Ways).
One of the most important innovations developed in the TAG Highway is steel viaducts with long
spans. A special type of structural steel named as ventilated steel was used which provides protection
against corrosion by preserving a protective rust layer without any need of painting.
The total length is 801.50 m. with maximum span length of 110 m. and the height is 149.50m. It
comprises two edge pedestals, seven mid pedestals, and eight apertures and constructed as Korten steel
box sections with composite slab due to inconvenient topographic conditions. Atatürk Viaduct was the
second biggest viaduct of Europe and the first of Turkey at time of construction.
Manavgat bridge. Turkey. 1999.
Manavgat Bridge is located on Manavgat Creek at the new section of Antalya-Alanya highway.
Settlements due to weight of soil fill at the approach zones of the bridge on both edges were found to
be within tolerable limits upon soil investigations.
However necessary precautions were taken during the construction period.
Manavgat Bridge is the first application in Turkey of long orthotropic slab. Total length of three spans
is 170 m, mid span being 80 m and each one of the two side spans is 45 m. The system is designed
and constructed as twin-slab each of which is 13.60 m wide, and its total width is 27.20 m. Bridge
cross section is composed of a 6 meter width box section and 3.80 m cantilevers on both sides, in the
transverse direction of bridge axes.
Solférino Footbridge. Paris. France. 1999.
At time of construction, this is the only one footbridge on the Seine river in Paris.
It links the museum “Palais d’Orsay” to the Louvre, in the heart of Paris.
This sophisticated bridge is 140 m long, included a 106 m main span.
Designer : Marc Mimram
Picture : Christian Crémona
Contractors: Quillery, Eiffel construction métallique. www.lcpc.fr
La Garde Adhémar Bridge. Pierrelatte (Drôme), France. 2000.
This steel bridge is built for the railway TGV “High Speed” line Méditerranée.
It is an exceptional double-bowstring bridge, 325m long, comprising 2 spans 115,4 m long each.
Picture: Guy Sauvage SNCF (French railways)
Europe Bridge. Orléans (Loiret). France. 2000.
This Exceptional inclined bow-string steel bridge is built on the Loire River.
It is 470 m long, with a main span 201,60 m long.
Designers: A. Bourriat, S. Caltrava, J.B. Datry
Contractors : Chantiers Modernes, Eiddel Construction metallique, Victor Buick Steel Construction.
Picture: Christian Crémona
Mária Valéria Bridge. Esztergom. Hungary. (1895/2001)
This road bridge is really a strategic one because it links Hungary and Slovakia, on both sides of
Danube River.
It is 496 m long, comprising 5 spans. Pillars are built in stone and the structure is built in steel
(The greatest height of the main girder of the bridge is 14 m).
The bridge was damaged at the end of World War I, reconstructed in 1927.
It was destroyed during World War II, reconstructed and reopened to traffic in 2001.
Engineer : János Feketeházy.
Pont du «Bras de la Plaine». «Bras de la Plaine» bridge. Ile de la Réunion, France (2001).
This exceptional innovative road bridge comprises a single span, 280 m long, built on a deep 110 m gorge.
It is built using composite concrete-steel varying-shape segments installed following the cantilever method.
Thin deck flanges are made in high performance concrete and they are associated to steel tubes and prestressing tendons. The bridge is
designed taking into account strong cyclonic winds, up to 250 km/h.
Contractors: Bouygues Travaux Publics, DTP Terrassements.
www.bouygues-construction.com °
Picture : Photothèque Bouygues-Construction °
Concrete bridges in Europe
(1/1)
Pont-sur-Yonne Aqueduct. (Yonne), France (1869).
This arch bridge, on the Yonne river, is part of the “Aqueduc de la Vanne” which feeds Paris with water.
Locally, this bridge is the major element of a 60 km section of Aqueduct, mainly constructed using a sand
concrete (Fontainebleau sand). The whole bridge is 1 495 m long, with main spans 40 m long.
Following works on cement properties by L. Vicat (1818), and technological development for mixing at
industrial level, F. Coignet invented a “conglomerate concrete” (1853) used for construction of this bridge,
without any reinforcement.
Engineers: Eugène Belgrand, Felix Humblot,
Contractor: François Coignet
Picture : Frank Guyon° Courtesy Association Eugène Freyssinet °°
Villeneuve-sur-Lot Bridge. (Lot et Garonne), France. 1920.
This road bridge bridge is built on the Lot River.
It is an exceptional arch bridge, 96m long, constructed without any steel reinforcement.
It is a world record in its category.
Engineer: Eugène Freyssinet.
Contractor : Entreprise Limousin
Picture : Pierre Breton° Courtesy Association Eugène Freyssinet °°
Reinforced concrete bridges in Europe (1/8)
Camille de Hogues Bridge. Chatellerault (Vienne), France (1901).
This bridge is a typical and early application of concepts developed by François Hennebique for a rational use
of reinforced concrete. Arches and deck are constructed using this new material.
It is a road bridge built of the Vienne River, for National Road 10, a major road axis at the time of
construction.
It is 144 m long, comprising 3 arches: the central span is 50 m long and the 2 side spans are 40 m long.
Engineer: François Hennebique
Contractor : Martin et Pau
www.planete-tp.com °
Picture : Marcel Prade °
Boutiron Bridge. Vichy (Allier), France. 1912.
The Boutiron bridge is an innovative arch bridge in reinforced concrete, used for road traffic.
It is 242,5 m long, comprising 3 spans, respectively 67,5 m, 72,5 m, 62,5 m long.
Boutiron Bridge is the only one still existing, out of a series of 3 on the Allier River, designed by E. Freyssinet,
at the same period.
The 2 others were: “Le Pont du Veudre” (1912, main span 72,5 m), and “Pont de Chatel-de-Neuvre » (1923).
Both were destructed during World War II.
Engineer : Eugène Freyssinet
Contractor : Société Limousin et Compagnie
Picture : Frank Guyon Courtesy Association Eugène Freyssinet °
Ponts-Neufs viaduct. Hillion-Morieux (Côtes d’Armor). 1913-1922.
This remarkable railways viaduct was part of the Chemin de fer départemental des Côtes du
Nord, working from 1924 to 1956. It is a curved viaduct, 120 m in radius, 237,5 m long and
27,6 m high, constructed in reinforced concrete. It was a precursor in matter of use of this
new material. It comprises 8 spans with 12 m parabolic arches, with access bridges. Arches
comprise 2 half-arches, connected with 3 hinges, stabilized with concrete tie-beams. These
elements were pre-fabricated, an other innovation in terms of civil engineering at this time.
The railways line closed in 1956, so this viaduct is now opened to tourism.
Manager, designer and engineer : Louis Harel de la Noé.
° Association pour la sauvegarde des ouvrages d’art d’Harel de la Noë.
Picture : Franck Bourien °
http://asso-harel-de-la-noe.org
Synthesis prepared at CNISF (France). Georges Pilot. January 2008
Caroual Viaduct. Erquy (Côtes d’Armor). 1914.
An other remarkable railways viaduct belonging to the Chemin de fer départemental des Côtes
du Nord, working from 1924 to 1956. It is 109 m long et 17,5 m high , with 4 spans 12 m
long and a central arch 45 m long. Use of reinforced concrete for the construction was a
matter of innovation, as well as pre-fabrication technologies for the parabolic arches.
The railways line closed in 1956, so this viaduct is now opened to tourism.
Manager, designer and engineer : Louis Harel de la Noé.
° Association pour la sauvegarde des ouvrages d’art d’Harel de la Noë.
http://asso-harel-de-la-noe.org
Picture : Pierre Goréguès °
Pont La Fayette. La Fayette Bridge. Paris, France (1928).
This road bridge is constructed over the railways lines of the “Gare de l’Est” station in Paris.
It is a skew bridge with truss reinforced concrete beams.
It comprises 2 spans, 77 m and 72 m long with an intermediate pier. It was constructed without any
disturbance to the train traffic.
In 1961, for questions of train traffic, it was locally raised up (11.000 t) without any kind of structural
improvement.
At time of construction, it was a world record in its category.
Engineer: Albert Caquot
Picture Georges Pilot
Synthesis prepared at CNISF (France). Georges Pilot. January 2008
La Caille bridge. Cruseilles/Allonzier-la-Caille (Haute-Savoie), France. 1928.
This road bridge is constructed on the Usses ravine, 150 m deep.
It is 230 m long, including a famous arch built using reinforced concrete, 137,5 m long.
At the time of construction, it was a world record.
For construction, an innovative wood scaffolding was used. It comprised the classical wooden structure, suspended on
4 cables bearing on pylons built on the banks of the ravine.
Engineers-designers: Albert Caquot, Pelnard, Considère.
Contractor : Compagnie Lyonnaise d’Entreprises
Albert Loupe Bridge. Plougastel (Finistère), France. 1930.
This road bridge is constructed on the Elorn river.
It is a reinforced concrete, 888 m long, comprising three main spans, 188 m long each.
It is one of the most famous bridges designed by Eugène Freyssinet, inventor of the prestressed concrete.
This bridge is now disused, after nearby construction of the “Iroise” cable-stayed bridge.
Engineer : Eugène Freyssinet
Contractor: Entreprise Limousin
Picture : Jean Freyssinet° Courtesy Association Eugène Freyssinet° °
Bridge « A. Vergai » Lucca (Tuscany). Italy. 1932.
The A.Vergai Bridge near the village of Canigiano spans, from the height of 83 meters, a beautiful
gorge hollowed out in the limestone of the River Corfino: it is a daring construction built in 19321933, and one of the first bridges in reinforced concrete. Arturo Danusso was amongst the first
designers who used and elaborated a theory on reinforced concrete, understanding, at the same
time, its plastic behaviour.
Designer/Engineer : Arturo Danusso
Castelmoron Bridge. Castelmoron-sur-Lot (Lot et Garonne). France. 1933.
This elegant road bridge is built in reinforced concrete. The deck is supported by an innovative arch.
The span of this arch is 143 m long
Design office: Christiani and Nielsen (Danemark)
Picture : Jacques Mossot
°
Bridge Africa or del Testaccio. Rome (Lazio). Italy. 1947.
Its construction began in 1938 to link Viale Aventino to Trastevere Railway Station going through the demolition
of the Mattatoio (slaughterhouse).
Originally it was called “Ponte d'Africa” and was inaugurated in 1948. It has one span 122 meters wide; four basrelieves in travertine lie on its bridgeheads.
The Ponte Africa shows architectural characteristics very similar to the Risorgimento Bridge in Hennebique with
its cantilever arches.
Designer/Engineer: Giulio Krall
Bridge di Mezzo over the river Arno, Pisa (Tuscany). Italy. 1949.
The “Conte Ugolino” Bridge which links the two banks of the Arno River near Pisa is known as “di Mezzo”(in the
Middle). At the time of its construction, its single–span structure, 72 meter wide, was a design of outmost dare.
The bridge, built according to the closed spandrel cantilever typology, is 89 meters long and has a maximum
height of 12.50 meters.
Its structure is made of reinforced concrete, while its sides are covered with “Bianca di Verona” stones (white
stones from Verona). Its road surface is covered with porphyry; there is a “Croce Pisana” in its middle. The
reconstruction of the bridge represented the symbol of the reconstruction of the city; its design was selected
through a referendum.
Designer/Engineer: Giulio Krall
Birecik bridge. Turkey. 1956
Birecik Bridge is located on Euphrates River at Urfa-Gaziantep highway, nearby the town of Birecik.
The construction of the Birecik Bridge in 1956, which connected Birecik to Urfa (later named as Şanlıurfa) and
reduced transportation costs, opened the eastern and middle Anatolian markets to the region. Rapid
development in motor vehicles and mechanized agriculture increased the need for machinery parts production
and repairing.
Birecik Bridge is 694.60 meter long and comprises 20 reinforced concrete arches, simple and continuous girders
with different span lengths. The bridge has 5 arches each one having 57-meter free span, 14 piers at 26-meter
intervals and a 22-meter length overpass to both sides. Width of the bridge is 11 meters, 8 meter of which is
allocated for vehicles, and one-meter on both sides for pedestrians.
Bridge della Fortezza, Pisa (Tuscany). Italy. 1957.
The Ponte della Fortezza is 90 meters long, 14.20 meters high, 14.20 large.
It is a three-span closed spandrel bridge, whose longest span is 38 meters.
Its structure is made of reinforced concrete while its abutments and piers are covered with
freestone.
Designer/Engineer: Francesco Letterio Donato
Viaduct over the Fiumarella in Catanzaro (Calabria). Italy 1961.
The Fiumarella Viaduct connects the two sides of the Fiumarella valley in Catanzaro.
It is a daring work constructed in reinforced concrete, 468 meters long and it is the second in the
world as concerns its span (231 meters). The valley floor is instead 110 meters large. The deck arch,
built with two independent semi-arches, has a box-like structure from 10.5 meters wide to 25 meters
wide at its base.
Designer/Engineer: Riccardo Morandi.
Risorgimento bridge. Verona (Veneto), Italy. 1968.
The Ponte del Risorgimento, built between 1966 and 1968, was designed by Pierluigi Nervi.
It connects the area of Borgo Trento to the one of S. Zeno.
It allows the inflow of the traffic into the internal and external ring roads as well.
The bridge which has the continuous span typology lies on four legs. Its variable outline, of remarkable plastic
effect, is the result of progression of momentum.
Designer/Engineer: Pierluigi Nervi
Musumeci Bridge across the Basento River . Potenza (Basilicata). Italy. 1969.
This bridge was build towards the end of the 1960s.
It links the city of Potenza to the SS407 (State Road No 407).
This bridge is a milestone in the history of architecture as it is founded on “absolutely new forms, not
comparable with those previously adopted (MANFREDI NICOLETTI)”.
The whole bridge is formed by a single membrane structure 30 cm thick through four spans 70 meters
long each.
Designer/Engineer: Sergio Musumeci
Viaduct Platano, Romagnano al Monte. Salerno (Basilicata). Italy. 1978.
The viaduct Platano was built at the end of the 1970s.
It has a span of 291 meter between its hinges, and its bridge planking is divided into three spans
81, 140 and 81 meters long respectively.
The structure of its piers and frame is similar to the one used for the viaduct Sfalassa.
It is the tenth highest bridge in the world.
Designer/Engineer: Silvano Zorzi
The Krk Bridge. Croatia. 1980
The Krk bridge is the longest arch bridge in Croatia connecting the mainland and the Island of Krk. It is 1429,5
m long, comprising 2 carriage ways, one for each traffic direction, with a width of 11,50m. It comprises 2 reinforced concrete arches. The first span, 390 m long, is still the longest in the world in this category of reinforced concrete bridges. The second span is 244 m long. It was constructed by the free cantilever method in
the period between 1976 and 1980. It is characterized by the small thickness of the box arch section walls (12-25
cm). Due to the specially aggressive surroundings in which the bridge is situated (immediate vicinity of the
sea), despite regular and additional maintenance, the structural parts of the bridge are damaged and it is under
rehabilitation for some time now.
www.hac.hr
Viaduct 7. Avellino (Campania). Italy. 1989.
The characteristic of the Viaduct “7” near S. Mango over the Calore River is to be located in a scarcely urbanised
environment with an important scenic value.
This is the reason why it was designed as a structure with technical and architectonic characteristics that would affect
as little as possible the environment as well as allowing a good sightseeing of the scenery.
Designer/Engineer : Gabriele Mazzali
Pont sur la Rance. La Rance bridge. (Ile et Vilaine), France (1990).
This road bridge is 424 m long. It comprises:
- an exceptional reinforced concrete arch 261m long.
- a twin steel-concrete girder.
Contractor: VINCI-Construction grands projets.
Picture: Photothèque VINCI °
www.vinci.com °
Maslenica Highway Bridge. Croatia. 1997
The Maslenica bridge was the first large reinforced concrete arch bridge, for which Croatia bridge
building is famous for, constructed in Croatia after the war for independence. It is 350 m long and 20
m wide. It was crucial in providing road connection between the south and north of Croatia during
the war, when some parts of the country was occupied;.
The arch spans 200 m, and was constructed with suspended cantilever technique. The arch supports
concrete superstructure comprising precast girders and cast-in-place deck.
Viaduct Tusa, Motorway Messina-Palermo, Tusa (Messina, Sicilia), Italy. 2000.
The work has two roadways 11.6 meters large.
It is characterized by a static structure made of a single beam on eleven props.
More in details: the bridge has eight intermediate spans 90 meters long, its piers on the roadway bound to
Palermo present a variable height ranging from 34 to a maximum of 75 meters, and, on the way to
Messina the piers’ height range from a minimum of 19 to a maximum of 74 meters.
Designer/Engineer: Giuseppe Mancini.
Bridge across the Sacco-Sgurgola River Roma (Lazio). Italy. 2004.
The bridge across the Sacco River is part of the interventions planned for the new road system which was
made necessary after the construction of the high speed railway between Rome and Naples.
The work rolls on a total length of about 132 meters and has two 56 meters wide arches with a 5.6 meters
rise.
The permeation characteristic of the structure lessens the impact on the environment and enables, in the
river bed, to minimize the blockage of the water, by increasing its flow and decreasing the transversal
hydraulic thrust.
Designers/Engineers: Enzo Siviero; Roberto di Marco
Pre-stressed concrete bridges in Europe (1/5)
Luzancy Bridge. (Seine et Marne), France. 1946.
This road bridge is a very innovative one in matter of prestressed concrete: it is considered as the actual precursor one
in the world. Luzancy bridge is built on the Marne river, as a girder bridge, 55 m long.
As a “prototype” of the Freyssinet technologies, it was followed by a series of 5 similar prestressed concrete bridges,
also on the Marne River, built in 1949/1950, but 76 m long (Esbly, Sammeron, Changis, Trilbardou, Annet).
Engineer: Eugène Freyssinet
Picture : Pierre Jartoux°
Contractor: Entreprise Campenon-Bernard
Courtesy Association Eugène Freyssinet °°
Bridge across the Vajont Stream in Longarone. Belluno (Veneto), Italy. 1956.
The road arch bridge across the Vajont stream, 1955-1956, may be considered as important as the Storms River
Bridge in South Africa and the one over the Lake Lussia in Vagli (both bridges designed by R. Moranti) because of
the highly advanced construction techniques used as well as the construction and architecture levels achieved to the
utmost.
The construction of a camber would result too expensive. To substitute it, therefore, it was planned to rotate two
semi-arches that should be previously built on the mountainsides, and then installed with ad-hoc developed
machineries. Finally the arches were connected through the casting of the missing part of the arch.
Designer/Engineer : Carlo Pradella
Ile d’Oléron Bridge. Le Château d’Oléron (Charente Maritime). France. 1966.
The Oléron bridge is a road bridge, built on the Atlantic ocean: it links the Oléron Island to the
mainland.
It is 2 862 m long, constructed using 871 prestressed precast segments.
It comprises 4 main spans, 80 m long each, others spans being between 40 and 80 m long.
Engineers: Jacques Mathivat, Jean Müller
Picture : Photothèque VINCI°
Contractor: Entreprise Campenon-Bernard
www.vinci.com °
Viaduct Italia over the river Lao, Laino Borgo (Cosenza, Calabria). Italy. 1967.
The viaduct was built at the end of the 1960s to connect the village to its southern part.
It is the highest viaduct in Italy, 259 meters high from the valley floor.
It is 1,161 meters long and steps over the motorway A3 Salerno-Reggio Calabria near
Laino Borgo in the Province of Cosenza. Cestelli Guidi was among the first designers to
understand the potential of the pre-compressed reinforced concrete and contributed to its
development and knowledge.
Designer/Engineer: Carlo Cestelli Guidi.
Gennevilliers bridge. (Hauts de Seine). France. 1976.
This bridge, part of Motorway A 15, in the Paris suburbs, is built on the Seine river.
It is a girder box bridge, 658m long. It comprises 5 spans, the 2 most important spans being 172 m long.
Engineers: Jacques Mathivat, Jean Muller
Kochertalbridge Geislingen, Baden-Württemberg. Germany. 1977
In 1977 the Kochertal bridge was Europe`s highest bridge, at 185 m above the valley floor.
The 1.128 m long superstructure combines seven 138 m wide sections with two side sections, each with a span of 81 m.
This girder bridge comprises a deck in pre-stressed concrete and the piers are in reinforced concrete.
The bridge`s beauty is a result of the superstructure – the road lies on a box girder just 8.6 m wide with cantilever
panels.
Architect: Hans Kammerer
Kömürhan bridge. Turkey. 1986
Kömürhan Bridge is located on Euphrates River at Malatya-Elazığ highway crossing in Eastern Anatolia.
Three bridges were built successively at this location. The first bridge (1916) was made of wood with a
length of 543 meters. The second one (1932) was a reinforced concrete bridge constructed in a very short
time during the first years of the young Republic of Turkey.
It was submerged into the water of Karakaya Dam in 1980s.
The 3rd and the last generation Kömürhan Bridge is 287 meter long with 135 meter middle span and 76
meter side spans. It has been constructed by post-tensioning technology and is the first bridge constructed
by using balanced cantilever system in Turkey.
Pont de l’Ile de Ré. La Rochelle (Charente Maritime). France. 1988.
The Ile de Ré Bridge is a road bridge, built on the Atlantic ocean : it links the Ré Island to the mainland.
It is a 2927 m long bridge, and it follows a 5 000 m radius curve.
It is constructed using 798 prestressed precast segments, comprising 24 main spans, 110 m long each.
The deck is supported by 5,5 m diameter piers, bearing on 2m diameter piles.
Engineer: Michel Placidi
Contractors: Bouygues Travaux Publics, SAIPEM
Picture : Photothèque Bouygues-construction°
Viaduc de Rogerville. France. 1995.
This A 89 motorway bridge, located in the vicinity of the Normandy bridge, is a remarkable example of
complex structure designed taking into account environment protection of an outstanding landscape.
This prestressed concrete bridge, 684 m long, comprises 2 separate decks supported by complex piers,
each narrow girder-box being associated with struts which support the overhang.
Contractor: Bouygues Travaux Publics
Picture : Photothèque Bouygues-Construction°
www.bouygues-construction.com°
Prestressed concrete bridges in Europe (4/5)
Imrahor Viaduct. Turkey. 1998
The İmrahor Viaduct was constructed for the Mamak-Çankaya Roadway. It is a cast-in-situ cantilever
system, the most appropriate and best system that enables to use the minimum number of piers over a
maximum span in a wide and deep valley. it is 604 m long, the longest post-tensioned structure
constructed in Turkey. It consists of a four main spans, each of 115 m in length and two side spans
slabs each of 72 m in length. With its box girder section of 27 m width it was announced to be the
widest post-tensioned viaduct in the world. In this project external post-tensioning had been employed
for the first time in Turkey , resulting in a total of 800 tons strands. This system which is preferred
because of its strength, easy maintenance and security, is a construction technology where all kinds of
deformation resulting from construction and expansion can be controlled in the best way.
TGV Ventabren Bridge (Bouches du Rhône). France. 1998.
This rail bridge belongs to the TGV Méditerranée high speed line and it is the longest one of this line: 1
730 m.
It is a girder bridge, comprising a prestressed concrete deck.
It crosses A 7 motorway, using a sophisticated construction method in order to avoid to carry out works
over the motorway: the main span, 100 m long was built parallel to the motorway, then was put on its
definitive location by rotation.
The weight of this moving part of the bridge, 3 600 tons is a world record.
Contractor: VINCI-Construction
Picture : Ph. Giraud/Terres du Sud
www.groupe-vinci.com °
Photothèque VINCI °
TGV Avignon Bridge. France. 1998
Constructed in the vicinity of the city of Avignon, it comprises 2 parallel viaducts built on the Rhône river for
the “TGV Méditerranée” (High Speed Train Line) railways.
It is 1 500 m long, built using reinforced concrete with white cement in order to match the “Palais des Papes”
in Avignon. It comprises 840 segments installed using the cantilever method. This bridge is designed taking
into account exceptional loads: emergency train breaking, earthquake efforts, strong winds.
Contractors: Bouygues Travaux Publics, associated with GTM, Saipem, DTP and SEFI-Intrafor.
www.bouygues-construction.com°
Picture : Photothèque Bouygues-Construction°
Prestressed concrete bridges in Europe (5/5)
Dom Henrique bridge. Porto. Portugal. 2002.
The Infante Dom Henrique bridge is composed of two mutually interacting fundamental
elements: a very rigid pre-stressed reinforced concrete box beam, 4,50m in height, supported
on a very flexible reinforced concrete arch, 1,50m thick.
The span between abutments of the arch is 280m and the rise until the crown of the arch is
25m, thus a shallowness greater than 11/1.
In the 70m central segment of the bridge, the arch combines with the deck to form a box
section that is 6m in height/ The lateral faces of this section are recessed to give the
impression of continuity of both the deck and the arch. The arch has a constant thickness and
a width that increases from 10 m at the central span up to 20 m at the abutments.
Pierre Pfimlin Bridge. Altenheim-Eschau (Bas-Rhin). France. 2002
Constructed on the Rhein River, this new road bridge between France and Germany aims at a better traffic
balance between the 2 countries.
Built in prestressed concrete, it comprises the main bridge, 457 m long, and 2 access bridges, 216m and 295m
long.
The main bridge includes a main span 205m long, constructed using a special cantilever method: it is the longest
bridge in France using this method.
Contractors: Bilfinger Berger AG, Max Früh GmbH, Freyssinet International.
www.structurae.de°
Wood bridges in Europe (1/1)
Bridge dell’Accademia. Venezia, Italy. 1933
The bridge of the Accademia is one of the three bridges, together with the Rialto and Scalzi’s Bridges
(the latter also designed by Miozzi) spanning the Canal Grande. Originally made of iron the bridge was
opened in 1854.
Following the decay of this work, a competition was launched to build a new bridge made of stones.
The winning project (by Torres e Briazza) was never built. Instead, a one-span bridge (48 meters wide)
was built in wood. The bridge designed by Eugenio Miozzi was opened in 1933. Further interventions
added metal elements to the original work.
Designer/Engineer: Eugenio Miozzi.
Le Merle bridge. Saint-Geniez-ô-Merle (Corrèze), France. 1999.
This road bridge, which replaces an old suspension bridge (1852) on the Xaintrie river, is an exceptional work
entirely built in wood. Wood was chosen in order to allow the bridge to integrate properly a remarkable
landscape.
It is 57,7 m long and 9,85 m large.
The columns and the deck structure are in wood (Douglas/Oregon tree), and the deck is in reinforced concrete.
Beams are made using glued-laminated timbers.
Designer: Hervé David
Engineer: Jean-Louis Michotey
Contractor: SOGELERG, Croizet-Pourtry, C.M.B.P.
Picture: Christian Crémona (LCPC)
A 89 Chavanon bridge. Ussel (Corrèze), France (2002).
This bridge is built on the A 89 Motorway, in connection with a service area .
It is a complex bridge associating a wooden structure and a concrete deck.
Contractor: DV Construction.
Picture : Bouygues-Construction °
Suspension bridges in Europe (1/3)
Menai Bridge. United Kingdom.1826
The bridge has an overall length of 1,000ft, seven stone approach spans of 52ft and a main central suspension
span of 579ft, tower to tower, carrying the road 100ft above sea level.
The deck was suspended from four sets of wrought iron chains. Modifications to the bridge were made
following damage by a storm in January 1839. In 1893 the timber deck was replaced by steel troughing on
flat-bottomed rails. In 1940 the chains were replaced by two sets of steel chains, the deck was rebuilt in steel
to take heavier road traffic and a cantilevered footway was added on each side, so giving the bridge the
appearance that it has today.
Engineer : Telford
Contractor : John Wilson
Ile Barbe bridge. Lyon (Rhône). France. 1827.
This road bridge, built on the Saône river is the oldest bridge in the City of Lyon, likely the oldest suspension
bridge still existing in France. It is 100 m long, using originally chain cables, replaced later on using iron wires .
It is anchored in the rock, then remaining intact after various floodings happening since construction of the
bridge.
It was constructed around 4 years after the first suspension bridge built in France on the Rhône river by Marc
Seguin, bridge now removed.
Engineer. M. Favier
www.structurae.de ° www.art-et-histoire.com
Charles-Albert bridge. Cruseilles (Haute-Savoie). France. 1838
This long road bridge is built on the impressive Usses ravine, 150 m deep. It is anchored in the
rock.
This exceptional suspension bridge is 194 m long.
Engineers: MM. Belin, Berthier, Lehaître.
Chain Bridge. Budapest. Hungary. (1849)
This famous steel road bridge was built on Danube River in order to link the 2 cities, Buda
and Pest. It was the first bridge constructed over the 2400 km long Danube under
Regensburg (Germany). It is 380 m long, with 3 spans, 88,7 m, 202,6 m, 88,7 m long.
The chain elements were manufactured at Hunter &English, the cast iron supporting
elements were done in Hungary, at the iron works of count Andrássy in Dernő (today
Slovakia).
The bridge was damaged during World War II, but reconstructed as before.
The Chain Bridge and its surroundings belong today to the World Heritage.
Engineers: William Tierney Clark, Adam Clark.
Tancarville Bridge, (Seine Maritime). France 1959.
This highway bridge is a link between the 2 sides of the Seine River, of considerable interest (Now saturated by
traffic). It is 1 420 m long, built 51 m over the Seine River. This includes the suspension bridge, 960 m long, with a
central span 608 m long (the longest in France) and 2 side spans 176 m each. The deck is made in steel.
Pylons are 123 m high, built in reinforced concrete. Decks of access spans (8x 50 m) are in precast prestressed
concrete.
It is to be noted that suspension cables were replaced and reinforced in 1999.
Engineers: Marcel Huet, Frederic Robinson, Nicolas Esquillan
Contractor: VINCI-Construction
www groupevinci.com
Picture : Photothèque VINCI
Bosphorus Bridge. Istanbul. Turkey. 1973
The bridge is a steel suspension bridge, with a middle span of 1.074 m, a width of 33.40 m and an altitude of 64 m.
Bosphorus bridge has a long history of construction, including rejections or lack of financing of the project.
Every stage in the construction of the Bosphorus Bridge was given full coverage by the press. The guide wire was
stretched on January 11, 1972. The headline: "The shores of the Bosphorus linked by wire." Then in April the
technical staff crossed the service bridge built on the guide wires. Another striking headline was “The first to go
from a continent to another one, from Europe to Asia, at foot”.
The Bosphorus Bridge was officially opened by President Fahri Korutürk during the 50th anniversary celebrations
of the foundation of the Republic, in 1973. 28 thousand 126 vehicles crossed it within the first 24 hours.
Humber Bridge. United Kingdom. 1981
This superb modern suspension bridge was, at the time, the longest span of any
bridge in the world. The main span of 1,410 m and the asymmetric north and
south side spans of 280m and 530 m respectively are suspended from hollow
reinforced concrete towers that reach 155.5m above the tops of their piers, the first
major suspension bridge to use concrete in this way. Each 700m diameter, 5,500
tonne suspension cables consists of 37 strands, each strand having 404 individual
5mm high tensile steel wires. The welded steel deck structure is 28.5m wide
overall and 4.5m deep and is suspended from the main cables by inclined hangers.
Engineers:Freeman Fox & Partners
Contractors: John Howard & Co British Bridge Builders Ltd
Cable stayed bridges in Europe (1/6)
The Gisclard railroad bridge. (Pyrénées Orientales). France. 1909.
This bridge is part of the railways line (always active) built until 1910 from Villefranche-de-Conflent to La-Tour-de
Carol, named “Le train jaune”.
It involves a new concept for the cables, making them able to support heaviest loads than normal suspension brides.
This concept was developed by Major Albert Gisclard, from the French Corp of Engineers: it is a step towards
cable-stayed bridges..
The licence of this new concept was delivered to F. Arnodin, then used for reinforcement of several suspension
bridges.
Engineer: Albert Gisclard.
www.tramwaytetg.free.fr/page16.htm °
Picture : L. Maraval °
Lézardrieux bridge. (Cotes d’Armor). France. 1925.
Lézardrieux road bridge is built on the Trieux river, replacing a suspension bridge built at the same place in 1840,
using the Marc Seguin technology.
It is 160 m long, including a central span 112 m long and 2 side spans 20 m long (plus access viaducts).
The Lézardrieux bridge is the first typical modern cable-stayed bridge built in France: all cables (fan system) are
anchored in the deck (with a complex connection cable node in the middle of the bridge). Portal tower and deck
are in steel.
Engineer: Gaston Leinekugel-Lecocq (Ferdinand Arnodin son-in-law)
www.cc-lezardrieux.com °
Picture : Marie Laizet °
Pont de Pierrelatte. Pierrelatte bridge. (Drôme). France (1952).
This road bridge is built on the Rhône diversion diversion canal, between Donzère and Mondragon.
It is 160 m long, with a central span 81 m long.
The portal tower and the deck are constructed in reinforced concrete, and it is the first cable stayed bridge with pretensioned cable.
Pierrelatte bridge is really the precursor of modern cable-stayed bridges in France.
Engineer: Albert Caquot
Cable-stayed bridges in Europe (2/6)
Köhlbrandbridge, Hamburg. Germany. 1974
germany
The
aesthetically pleasing Köhlbrand bridge was awared the 1975 steel construction prize as Europe’s most beautiful bridge.
The almost 4 km long Köhlbrandbrücke (Köhlbrand Bridge) spans the 300 m wide "Köhlbrand", the so-named northern section of the
Südelbe in an audacious curve. The original path of the Südelbe has been dyked just before its junction with the Norderelbe since the
Flood Disaster of 1962 between Finkenwerder and Neuenfelde (Altes Land). The centrepiece of the structure, a 325 m steel bridge, is
suspended from 88 steel cables at the sides, using locked coil ropes. The two uniquely shaped pylons with steel cables as thick as a
man`s arm reach a height of almost 130 m. The clearance for ships is 54 m above medium tide low water.
This impressive elevated road bridge connects the port area of Waltershof (Container Terminal) with Neuhof (Free Port area; customs
control within the bridge area). This majestic bridge has existed since 1974 as a new and highly visible Hamburg landmark.
Architect: Egon Jux
Picture : Michael Fehlauer, Köln, 2005
Saint Nazaire Bridge. (Loire atlantique). France. 1975.
This road bridge is built over the Loire River Estuary on the initiative of the County authorities (It replaced a
ferry).
It is 3 356 m long, the longest bridge in France at the time of construction, comprising:
- the main bridge, cable-stayed, 720 m long: the central span, 404 m long (the longest in the word at the
time of construction), and 2 lateral spans, 158 m each. It comprises 2 frame metal towers with 2 fans of
inclined cable-stays. The deck is in steel.
- the north access bridge (1 115m), comprising 30 spans, around 50 m each, and the south access bridge (1
521 m) comprising 22 spans. Access bridges decks are built in pre-stressed concrete.
Contractors: Campenon-Bernard, Freyssinet
www.groupe-vinci.com°
Picture : Photothèque VINCI °
Bridge all’Indiano. Florence (Toscana), Italy. 1978.
The Ponte all'Indiano is the most recent bridge in Florence as it was
built between 1972 and 1978. It links the areas of Peretola and the
Isolotto through a fast flowing traffic road across the Arno.
Unique bridge in Europe as dimension (a road cable-stayed bridge
not self anchored), it has a central span supported by stayed cables,
with a 206 meters span and framed into reinforced steel sheets
which form two trapezoidal caisson girders connected by horizontal
crosspieces and braces.
Designer/Engineer: Fabrizio de Miranda
Bridge over Tanaro river in Alba. Alba (Cunéo. Piemonte), Italy.
1985.
The bridge in Alba spans over the river Tanaro along the primary road
Cuneo-Alba-Asti.
It is the second Italian cable-stayed bridge totally in metal. It is a selfanchored cable-stayed asymmetrical bridge with two spans centrally
suspended.
Designer/Engineer: Giuseppe Vassallo.
Ponte over the Garigliano river. Latina (Lazio) Italy. 1992.
The bridge across the Garigliano River, built in the early 1990s, is a cable-stayed structure with a unique
central metallic pier to avoid the overlap of cables.
Its two spans are 90 meters long. Its designer had been exploring a variety of design concepts implementing
solutions that go beyond the traditional schemes and show great freedom of expression.
Designer/Engineer : Michele Mele
The Chalkis Bridge. Greece. 1993.
This cable-stayed bridge spanning from the mainland (foreground) to the island of Euboea (background)
opened for traffic in 1993.
It is 695 m long, with a main span of 215 m and two side spans of 90 m.
The Evian Gulf is a neotectonic graben formed by normal faults trending northwest. The bridge was
founded on two horst blocks with an intervening trench. The rocks in the foreground are low grade marbles.
General references www.structurae.net
Iroise bridge. Plougastel (Finistère), France. 1994.
This highway bridge is built on the Elorn river.
It is 800 m long, with a central span 400 m long and 2 lateral spans 200 m long each.
The deck is built in prestressed concrete.
The cables are all together in an axial fan, which made this bridge the world record in its category.
Engineers : Michel Placidi, Alain Chauvin
Architects: René Le Friant, René Terzian
Picture : Christian Crémona. (LCPC)
Normandie Bridge. Honfleur-Le Havre (Seine Maritime), France. 1995.
Normandie Bridge is the masterpiece of the French western motorway system which links Northern Countries to
Southern Countries.
It is a cable-stayed bridge, 2 141 m long, including a 856 m long central span, world record at this time, and 2 access
viaducts, respectively 738 m and 547 m long.
The central span is supported by 2 pylons, 214 m high, which receive the 184 cables attached laterally to the deck. The
central span comprises 2 cantilever concrete beams near the pylons, then connected to the steel central part, 624 m
long. Very extended studies were performed dealing with wind effects on the bridge.
Engineers: Michel Virlogeux, Bernard Deroubaix.
Contractors: Bouygues, Campenon-Bernard, Dumez, GTM, Quillery, SPIE, SOGEA, Monberg and Thorsen.
Picture: Georges Pilot
Pilot
Doc. Vincent Le Quéré °
Malpensa 2000 Bridge. Milano (Lombardia). Italy. 1998.
This viaduct was built in 1999 to give access to the new Malpensa 2000 airport.
The project was worked out by delimiting the lateral borders of the airport with two twin cable-stayed
bridges of a circular helix shape.
Each bridge has a central pier that divides it into two spans 140 meters long. The pier is about 36 meters
high and its sectional beams range from 2.4 meters to 1.85 meters.
Designer/Engineer : Francesco Martinez y Cabrera
Cable-stayed bridges in Europe (5/6)
Vasco da Gama Bridge. Lisboa. Portugal. 1998.
The Vasco da Gama Bridge Project consists of a 12km crossing of the Tagus River in Lisbon, being one
of the longest bridges in the world.
The crossing is composed of North Viaduct, Expo Viaduct, Main Bridge, Central Viaduct and South
Viaduct. The Main bridge presents a cable stayed solution with 420m central span and three lateral spans
on each side with 62 + 70.6 + 72m. Innovative elasto-plastic dampers were placed between the deck and
the towers to reduce the horizontal movements.
The bridge was designed in terms of actions and durability for a service life of 120 years .
Engineering : Tejo Projecto
Contractor: Lusoponte
Rijeka dubrovacka Bridge. Croatia. 2002.
This bridge is the first cable-stayed bridge built in Croatia. It provides a shorter route for the western
entrance to the world-heritage city of Dubrovnik. A distinctive feature of the structure is the
asymmetrical layout with a single pylon, which had to be chosen because of a sharp curve of the
approaching road. The bridge is 518 m long, and consists of 87 m span box type pre-stressed
concrete approach viaduct with the 60 m cantilever and the two-span cable-stayed bridge of 244 m
and 81 m with composite superstructure. The “A” shaped concrete pylon is 142 m high and the
cables are of modified fan type with partial suspension in 2 inclines planes.
Rion-Antirion Bridge. Greece. 2004.
The Rion-Antirion bridge span over the Corinth Gulf and is a part of the western
transportation axis of Greece. It was for more than 120 years the vision of many
governments. Its construction was very difficult due to the strong seismic activity of this
area (there is an active seismic fault in the Corinth Gulf) as well as the absence of a stiff
seabed subsoil. The project started at 1998 and finished at 2004.
The bridge consists of 2252 m long 4 pylon cable-stayed and the three inner spans are 560m
long. There are two approach viaducts of 392 and 239 m at both sides. The three pylon
foundations have about 90 m diameter.The bridge is the longest cable stayed bridge in the
world at this time.
General references www.gefyra.gr
Millau Bridge. Millau (Ardèche), France (2004).
Millau Bridge, south of France, closes the missing section of Motorway A75
linking Paris to thee Mediterranean coast. The bridge, 2 460 m long, shows
following unique characteristics:
- series of 7 continuous cable-stayed bridges bearing the metallic deck.
Deck elements are completely manufactured in workshop. Cables are
arranged in simple axial fan systems.
- pilars in high performance concrete and metallic pylons of exceptional
height, all together 343 m at its maximum, a world record.
Designer: Michel Virlogeux.
Contractor: Eiffage TP
Picture : Jean-François Coste
Special Bridges. Aqueducts in Europe (1/1)
Roquefavour Aqueduct. Ventadren (Bouches du Rhône). France. 1847.
This exceptional aqueduct was built as the master piece of the “Canal de Marseille”, 80 km long, used for water
supply of the City of Marseille.
It is an arch stone bridge comprising 3 levels of arches.
The aqueduct is 393 m long, 82 m high, with main spans 16 m long.
Engineer: Frantz de Montricher
Picture : Philip Bourret °
Pont-sur-Yonne Aqueduct. (Yonne). France. 1869.
This arch bridge, on the Yonne river, is part of the “Aqueduc de la Vanne” which feeds Paris with water.
Locally, this bridge is the major element of a 60 km section of Aqueduct, mainly constructed using a sand
concrete (Fontainebleau sand).
The whole bridge is 1 495 m long, with main spans 40 m long.
Following works on cement properties by L. Vicat (1818), and technological development for mixing at
industrial level, F. Coignet invented a “conglomerate concrete” (1853) used for construction of this bridge,
without any reinforcement.
Engineers: Eugène Belgrand, Felix Humblot,
Contractor: François Coignet
Picture : Frank Guyon° Courtesy Association Eugène Freyssinet °°
Special Bridges, Bascule Bridges in Europe (1/1)
François 1er Bridge. Le Havre (Seine Maritime), France. 1971.
This special road bridge, a bascule bridge, is built in “Le Havre” Habour, nearby the «“François 1er” lock.
The total length of this bridge is 90 m, with a main span 74,50 m long. It is built in steel.
It is one of the most important bridge in this category in Europe.
Picture: encyclopedie izynews °
Galata bridge. Istanbul. Turkey. 1994
Galata Bridge is one of the popular historical landmarks of Istanbul, which has a construction history of different
stages and locations, with the same name. Including plans of Leonardo Da Vinci, Galata Bridge had been an
important structure of Turkish engineering history.
The fifth Galata bridge was built by the Turkish construction company STFA exactly on the same place of the
previous bridge, between Karaköy and Eminönü, and completed in December 1994. It is a bascule bridge, ranking
first of its type in the world which is 490 m long with a main span of 80 m. The deck of the bridge is 42 m wide
and has three vehicular lanes and one walkway in each direction. It has also recently had tram tracks added to it,
allowing the Istanbul Tram to run from the suburbs near Ataturk International Airport to a few blocks before
Dolmabahçe Palace.
Special Bridges. Canal Bridges in Europe (1/1)
A Canal bridge: the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. United Kingdom. 1805.
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct carries the Llangollen Branch of the Ellesmere Canal over the River Dee 2 miles west of
Ruabon .
At Pontcysyllte, a trough 11ft 9¾ in wide is carried on four arch ribs over each of the nineteen 44ft 6in spans
between the masonry piers. The aqueduct is 1,007ft long and at the highest point is 121ft above the river.
The embankment at the south end was one of the greatest earthworks undertaken at the time.
It was scheduled as an ancient monument in 1958.
Engineers :Thomas Telford, William Jessop, Mathew Davidson Contractors :William Hazledine, the local iron master, and
the two master masons John Simpson and John Wilson.
Agen Canal-Bridge, (Lot et Garonne). France. 1847.
This bridge carries the canal which is parallel to the Garonne river, named “Canal latéral à la Garonne”.
It is, with “Canal du Midi”, one of the 2 canals which allows boats to flow from Atlantic Ocean to Mediterranean Sea.
Main characteristics of Agen Canal-Bridge are:
- 539 m long
- 23 spans 20 m long each.
Engineers: M de Vaudre et V. Maniel
Picture : Philip Bourret °
Briare Canal-Bridge. France.1896.
This is one of the major civil engineering work of the “Canal de Briare”.
The “Briare canal-bridge” is built on the Loire river in order to avoid difficult navigation conditions on the Loire river.
This elegant bridge is 663 m long, a world record in its category, comprising 15 spans 40 m long each.
It is built in iron, on masonry pillars.
It was opened to traffic on 1896.
Engineers: Abel Mazoyer
Picture : ASCO-TP °
Special bridges. Movable Bridges in Europe (1/1)
Recouvrance movable Bridge. Brest (Finistère), France. 1954.
This movable road bridge was the most important in its category in Europe .
It is 87,5 m long, supported by pylons 70m high.
Pylons are built in reinforced concrete and the movable span is constructed in steel.
Picture: Bruno Vacher °
Special Bridges. Rotating Bridges in Europe (1/1)
Caronte rotating Bridge (Bouches du Rhône). France. 1915/1954
This railway bridge is part of the Miramas-L’Estaque line.
It is 943m long, comprising 8 spans 82,5 m long, 2 spans 51 m long, and 2 rotating
spans 57 m long each. The rotating spans were constructed in order to allow big ships to
enter in the Caronte Chanel.
These sensitive spans were destroyed during World War II, then reconstructed exactly
as before after the war.
Contractors: Daydé and Schneider et Cie, Schneider et Cie.
Rotating bridge. Livorno (Toscana) Italy (2000-2002)
It is a movable bridge of the swing type with a single moving span which
by pivoting on its spherical supporting pin placed at 40 meters from the
free end of the bridge gives a more than 4 meters opening in the channel.
The structural design of the movable bridge in Livorno, totally made of
metal, introduces some innovations in the traditional construction schemes
of swing bridges, with an improvement of dynamic behaviours, running
and maintenance, and also a reduction of wear and tear caused by fatigue.
Designers/Engineers: Raffaelo Barteletti and Massimo Viviani
Transborder in Europe (1/1)
Rochefort/Martrou bridge (Charente Maritime). France . 1900.
This very special bridge was built in order to transfer pedestrians and light cars, in a cabin
suspended by cables, from one side of the Charente river to the other one.
It is 175 m long, including the main span, 139 m long. The supporting beam is 66 m high, allowing the
highest ships to navigate on the Charente River.
It is the only one transporter bridge still existing in France. Now completely restored, it is used for
pedestrians and bikes.
It is registered as historical monument
Engineer: Ferdinand Arnodin

Synthesis of bridges Concrete bridges in Europe

Transcription

Documents pareils

this article

1 Missouri River Bridges of South Dakota 1920 to 1980 An Oral

this article

Jean M. Muller: Bridge Engineer

OFFICIAL PUBLICA TION OF THE CANADIAN BRIDGE FEDERA

BCSept02_pp19-36 copy - Canadian Bridge Federation