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Brăila will become the second longest suspension bridge in continental Europe
The Brăila bridge that will become the second longest in continental Europe among “suspension” bridges is getting ready for opening.
Brăila is a city with the population of 200,000 in eastern Romania, close to the Moldova border. For the locals, Danube has always been an economic resource, but also a geographical limitation. The new bridge, while leaving the economic opportunities untouched, with the added mobility for fast transition to the opposite side, will most likely boost the development of the entire region.
The river can now be crossed in 2 minutes, compared to the 45 minutes it took previously
A Record-Breaking Bridge
The length of the central span of the Brăila bridge is 1120 meters, and the construction that is suspended over Danube (this is a so-called cable bridge) allows the passage of large ocean ships. The structure will be 31.7 meters wide, supported by two towers 192.4 meters tall. The roadway will be 22 meters wide and contain 4 driving lanes, emergency lanes, bicycles lanes, and pedestrian walkways. Now you can cross the river in 2 minutes, instead of 45. Two carrier cables supporting the span consist of 18,000 steel wires, whose total length reaches 38,000 kilometers – just slightly short of the Earth’s circumference.
The work was completed by a consortium of companies headed by the Italian firm Webuild and includes a range of other complementary projects, such as building 36 small bridges, two access viaducts, and 21 km of speedways.
This project is a part of the TEN-T continental network – Trans-European Transport Network
Objective: Development of the Entire Region
The Brăila bridge will carry 7000 automobiles daily. This is the strategic task on developing the Tulcea area and the entire northeastern part of Romania, which also includes the Danube Delta. Its uniqueness and importance for the economic development ensued that the bridge was financed by the European Operational Program for Large Infrastructures (POIM). The task is a part of the TEN-T continental network (Trans-European Transport Network), a sequence of integrated transport infrastructures designed to support the single market, guarantee free transportation of goods and people, and stimulate growth, employment, and competitiveness of the European Union.
