Øresund Bridge

The attraction is related to the countries:DenmarkSweden

More than 8000 years ago, the forces of nature separated the two pieces of land on which the states of Denmark and Sweden were formed, but in modern times their shores have been united thanks to the superior skill of modern engineers.

The Eresund Bridge is part of a grander project called the Eresund Region, which is to connect Denmark’s capital Copenhagen with the nearby Swedish city of Malmö. The central span with its road and railroad tracks and tunnel is called the Upper Bridge – it is the longest cable-stayed bridge in the world. It was built in August 1999, but was officially opened on July 1, 2000 in the presence of Danish and Swedish royalty. Even today it takes only 10 minutes to drive from Denmark to Sweden. The graceful pylons of the bridge can be seen from afar.

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General Information

The design of the bridge was developed in the Eresund Consortium by a specially formed team to provide an integrated transportation project. Made up of half Swedes and Danes, the consortium acted as owner and contractor. The work was carried out on a long-term loan of $12 billion, which it expects to repay with bridge revenues by about 2035.

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Architect Rotne’s plans were realized in four years. The bridge crosses the 18-kilometer-long Eresund Strait in several stages. On the Danish side, the artificially embanked island of Peberholm (“Pepper Island”) is the beginning of a 3,700-meter-long tunnel leading through the Drogden Passage to Copenhagen. On the eastern shore from Peberholm Island, the Upper Bridge begins with a 4-lane highway and railroad. It is high enough for any ships to pass freely underneath.

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The Eresunn Upper Bridge, in turn, is part of a 7.8 km long composite span. On the Danish side, a 3014-meter-long descent consisting of 22 support segments leads to the shore. On the Swedish side, the descent is 3,739 m long and required 28 such segments. On both sides, the first segment closest to the shore is 8 m high, and they gradually grow to 65 m, the height of the bridge itself.

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The upper bridge is the “proper” Eresund Bridge, crossing the main channel of the strait. It is 1,624 m long, with a 490 m long central cable-stayed opening. It is framed by two heavy-duty cables, each 85 centimeters thick, stretched between two giant piers made of particularly strong concrete. The 203.5 m high supports are considered to be the tallest structures in Sweden. They measure 9.4 X 12.6 m across at the base and 2.6 X 5.8 m across at the top. The width of the highway and railroad bed is 23.5 m. Four cars can move simultaneously on the upper level and two railroad trains on the lower level. A one-way trip across the Eresund Bridge costs about $53 per passenger car.

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The tunnel and the island of Peberholm

On the Danish side, the trip (16 km) across the Øresund begins by traversing a 4 km underwater tunnel, necessitated by the proximity of Copenhagen Airport. The tunnel comes out on the artificial embankment island Peberholm (Pepper Island by analogy with the neighboring Salt Island). Peberholm is a kind of transition to the 7,845 m long bridge itself.

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Access roads

To the west and east, two trestles, 3 km and 3.7 km long, approach the main part of the bridge.

Cable-stayed bridge

The length of the suspension part of the cable-stayed bridge is 1092 meters. The height of the giant reinforced concrete pylons is 204 meters. The H-shaped pylons were fixed in place using climbing and climbing formwork. The length of the main span is 490 m. The Eresuin Bridge is the longest automobile-iron-road cable-stayed bridge in the world.

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Roadway

The bridge carries a two-track railroad and a four-lane highway. An average of 2,000 vehicles travel over the bridge each day. The bridge is toll-free (285 SEK, or 28, 3 €).

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Facts about the Eresund Bridge

  • Location: The bridge was built from 1996 to 2000, connecting Denmark and Sweden. The project was designed by architect Georg Rotne.
  • Type of construction: Two-level cable-stayed bridge. The width of the road and railroad tracks is 23.5 m. Cars move on the upper level, trains – on the lower level, reinforced with a steel frame.
  • Length: The upper bridge is 1,624 meters long. Its central, cable-stayed section, 490 long, has a clearance of 61 m.
  • Support dimensions: The height of the supports is 203.5 m.
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  • Weight: The cable stretched between the supports weighs 2,300 tons. The steel span between them is about 145000 tons.
  • Volume of poured concrete: 32000000 cubic meters²
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