Krk Bridge

Krčki most
Official name Krčki most
Carries Road vehicles
Crosses Krk Channel (Adriatic Sea)
Locale Western Croatia
Maintained by Autocesta Rijeka-Zagreb d.d.
Design concrete arch bridge
Total length 1430 m
Width 11.40 m
Longest span 390 m (416 m underwater)
Clearance below 67.02 m, smaller bow 54.56 m
Constructed by Mostogradnja
Construction begin 1976
Construction end 1980
Opened July 19, 1980
Toll 30-120 kunas, charged only toward the island

Krk Bridge (Croatian: Krčki most) is a 1430 m long reinforced concrete arch bridge connecting the Croatian island of Krk to the mainland and carrying over a million vehicles per year. The longer of the bridge's two arches is the second longest concrete arch in the world and among the longest arches of any construction. The bridge was completed and opened in July 1980 and originally named Titov most ("Tito's bridge") in honor of Yugoslav president Josip Broz Tito, who had died two months prior.

Contents

Construction

The bridge was designed by Ilija Stojadinović in cooperation with Vukan Njagulj and Bojan Možina , and built by Mostogradnja Belgrade and Hidroelektra Zagreb, between 1976 and 1980, using cantilever construction with temporary cable-stays. Structurally, the bridge consists of two reinforced concrete arch spans, which rest on the islet of Sveti Marko between Krk and the mainland. The length of the longer arch is 390 m (actually 416 m, a part of the bow is in the water), which made it the longest concrete arch at the time of construction, the distinction it held until it was surpassed by Wanxian Bridge (420 m length of arch) in 1997.

Traffic

Krk Bridge connects the island's 17,860 (2001) inhabitants and its tourist resorts to Jadranska magistrala, the main-road along the Adriatic coast. It also connects the city of Rijeka to Rijeka Airport, which is situated on Krk. In the first 20 years of its existence, the bridge was crossed by 27 million vehicles, more than double of ferry traffic to and from the island. The increasing levels of traffic warrant a larger replacement bridge which is currently in planning stages.

Krk Bridge and its surroundings

See also

References

External links