The Svinesund Bridge, Norway/Sweden

The new Svinesund Bridge on the border between Norway and Sweden was opened to traffic in 2005. The bridge is on the European highway E6, and forms part of the upgrading of this highway between Oslo in Norway and Gothenburg in Sweden. The chosen bridge site is in a picturesque part of the Idde Fjord and is prominently visible from the sea and from the old highway bridge close by. An international design competition was launched in 2000, where nine consulting groups were selected to participate after a prequalification round. All groups were from Europe. The announced winner was the project 'Arc', developed by a Norwegian/Swedish group. The bridge concept consists of a single, centrally located concrete arch, with two steel orthotrope deck girders, one on each side of the arch. The girders are connected with crossbeams. The arch spans 247.3 m, and this is believed to be the longest span for such a single arch in the world. The bridge was constructed based on the winning concept in a turn-key contract, and was completed on schedule for the opening ceremony on June 5th, 2005. This date corresponds to the 100th year anniversary of the termination of the union between Norway and Sweden, when Norway gained her Independence. The bridge was opened by the Kings of Norway and Sweden. This paper deals with important aspects of the design and construction of the project based on 'Arc'.