The longest bridge in Europe Vasco da Gama

In the list of modern wonders of the world you can safely make a bridge Vasco da Gama. It is located in the north-eastern part of Portugal near Lisbon.

Vasco da Gama was known as a Portuguese navigator of the times of the Great Discoveries. In 1497 the traveler together with the expedition set off on a quest for a sea route to South Asia from Europe. The trip was crowned with success: Vasco da Gama discovered the southeast coast of Africa, from which a further path led to India through the Indian Ocean. In 1499, the expedition returned with great triumph to its homeland, led by the winner. For great service to the fatherland, Vasco da Gama was appointed vice-king of Portuguese India.

In the name of the discoverer, it was decided to name the bridge that connects the coasts of Portugal across the Tagus River (or the Tahoe). It is the largest on the entire Iberian Peninsula. The river begins in Spain, runs through the whole of Portugal and flows into the Atlantic Ocean near the capital of the country - the city of Lisbon. The bridge Vasco da Gama was conceived as a grandiose and large-scale target-oriented facility. The feasibility of building a bridge was dictated by the urgent need to relieve the car flow in Lisbon on the Hanging Bridge named April 25.

The project of the new bridge was commissioned to develop a group of architects led by Michel Verlozh. Before them there was an uneasy task - to connect the banks of the river Tagus, separated by a distance of more than fifteen kilometers, taking into account the high seismic hazard of the region.

Vasco da Gama Bridge: features of the project

The authors have created a draft of a bridge consisting of several sections, structurally differing among themselves. The longest part of a length of twelve kilometers looks like a cable-stayed, or hanging, bridge. High reinforced concrete pylons are connected to the road with the help of cables - steel straight cables. The height of the pylons reaches one hundred and fifty meters. The largest span of the cable-stayed bridge is four hundred and twenty meters. In addition, the height of the road relative to sea level is forty-seven meters. Such parameters do not prevent the free passage of river vessels.

It is the cable bridge that ensures the immovability of the roadway. Lightweight pavement is attached separately from the pylons, which prevents the destruction of the bridge during seismic vibrations and storm wind. The design is resistant to wind loads up to two hundred and fifty kilometers per hour. The Vasco da Gama bridge will withstand the fluctuations of the earth's crust, whose strength is four times greater than the earthquake with a thrust force of up to nine points, which occurred in Lisbon in the mid-eighteenth century.

In the initial and final parts the bridge passes into a viaduct - a bridge structure on piles. The distance between the supports in different places ranges from forty to eighty meters. Under the water piles go to a depth of 100 meters.

The total length of the Vasco da Gama bridge is seventeen kilometers two hundred meters. Taking into account the considerable length of the overpass, when designing it, the roundness of the surface of the globe was taken into account in the calculations. Otherwise, between the height of the northern and southern extremities of the bridge, there would be a difference of eighty centimeters. The developers have defined the warranty period of operation of the unique design - one hundred and twenty years.

Roads

A thirty-meter-high motorway is laid across the bridge, along which traffic is organized on four lanes in each direction. Three bands are constantly engaged, the fourth is opened at the moments of maximum traffic flow. The maximum speed of traffic is one hundred and twenty kilometers per hour. Only one section of the bridge is not allowed to go faster than a hundred kilometers per hour. In adverse weather conditions, it is required to reduce the speed to ninety kilometers per hour.

For the organization of preventive measures to keep the bridge in a proper position with drivers moving towards the capital, a fare is charged. The cost is determined depending on the type of vehicle and ranges from two and a half to eleven euros.

Aesthetic features of the bridge

The authors of the project attached great importance to the aesthetic component of the bridge structure. To minimize the impact on the natural environment, the bridge was laid in a wide area of the river.

The viaduct, located on the south side, was erected at a considerable distance from the coast, so the coastal zone underwent minimal bottom destruction. Lighting is designed in such a way that the glare from the lamps at night is not reflected on the water surface.

Timing

The Vasco da Gama bridge was created in record time. It took only three years since the design of the grandiose project to put it into operation. Half of this period was occupied by preparatory work. More than three thousand builders took part in the construction of the giant's construction. The four largest construction companies provided uninterrupted operations with their own technical resources of the latest developments. The construction of a powerful transport artery cost the state nine million euros.

Opening

The grand opening of the large-scale construction took place on March 29, 1998 on the eve of the Expo-98 exhibition. A significant event was timed to the five hundredth anniversary of the discovery of the sea route by the traveler Vasco da Gama, in honor of which the supermodel was named.

Looking at the elegant, huge structure, the viewer gets the impression of airiness and weightlessness of the design, beckoning for an endless distance. Traveling in Portugal, it's worth to visit such a famous place as the Vasco da Gama Bridge, a photo of which will forever remember the strongest and brightest emotions. The grandiose structure amazes with its beauty at any time of the year, equally impressing with a sunny day and a dark night, a dull morning and a crimson evening.

Conclusion

The title of the longest European bridge was rightfully received by the Vasco da Gama bridge. Portugal can be deservedly proud of the unique structure brought by the world public to the treasury of the greatest architectural achievements of mankind of the late twentieth century.