Railway Crossing of the Süderelbe River, Hamburg, Germany

The four superstructures for the railway crossing of the Süderelbe in Hamburg, are a very good example of the development trends in modern steel-bridge design. These bridges show that by means of modern fabrication and erection methods, aesthetic and economic structures are derived which blend harmoniously with their environment. Due to the modification of the structure and erection procedure, a technically superior construction solution has been found and the inclusion of ballast leads to a considerable reduction in sound emissions. Further, expensive and costly direct support of the rails can be avoided and access to all elements and load-bearing welds can be easily made from outside. This new concept enabled the latest structure to be offered at reduced costs (approximately 40%) while still maintaining the weight of the structural steel work of approximately 3,300 tons.