1998 Vasco da Gama Bridge over River Tagus Estuary in Lisbon, Portugal

(Satellite)

travel-in-portugal, © jad99 from Graz, Austria / CC BY-SA 3.0

 

Highway Engineering Discoveries posted

Scott Fulton commented on the above post
Just crossed it!

lusopont
The web page has the toll rate information.

bie-paris, Credit: Nazzareno Agostinelli
This 17km (10.5 mile) bridge is named after Vasco da Gama Bridge. In 1498, he "became the first European to reach India by sailing around Africa." It was opened on Mar 29, 1998 to provide access to Expo 1998 and to help modernize Lisbon. It cost around 900m euros. "The 148-metre [585'] high bridge was designed to withstand winds of 250km/h and an earthquake as strong as in 1755, thanks to 95-metre deep foundations."

Highway Engineering Discoveries posted
Portugal
Hugo Costa: One of Lisbons half marathons.

 

Highway Engineering Discoveries posted
Vasco da gama Bridge, Lisbon

The 6-lane bridge has 81 piers and construction began in 1995. The main span is 420m (1,379', 1/4 mile) long. [b2] A lot of the construction interval was the planning phase. The actual construction was done in 18 months using four companies, each doing a part of the bridge.

As of 2018, it was still the longest bridge in Europe. [PortugalHomes]

It is "over 17.3km" and is now the second longest bridge in Europe. It is designed to withstand an earthquake that is four times [I've also seen 4.5 and 5 times] as strong as the 1755 earthquake and "withstand the impact of ships of up to 30,000 tonnes travelling at a speed of 12 knots." A cable can be replaced if its damaged by a traffic accident. [UlmaConstruction] 

The 1755 earthquake was estimated to be 8.7 on the Richter scale. [datajembatan]

The entire length of the cable-stayed part is 825m (2700', 1/2 mile), and it has a clearance of 45m (148'). The design allows the addition of two more lanes. [mageba]

"12.3: kilometers (or 7.6 miles) in length directly above water; 17.3 km in full length, and 11.5 km in viaducts." [aportugueseaffair] The long viaduct over land on the east side was to protect wetlands that are used by migratory birds.

The 2018 Crimean Bridge (19km [britannica]) is what made this the second longest bridge in Europe. The cost was US$1.1b and the design life is 120 years. [PortugalVisitor]

Total length: 17,185m [seici-group] I've seen other sources that agree with a 17.2km figure.

When it opened in 1998, it was the longest bridge in the world, and today it is still "Europe's longest bridge over an expanse of water." [I wonder if they are using the 12.3km figure for that claim.] It will be expanded from 6 to 8 lanes when the traffic exceeds 52,000 cars/day. The Ponte 25 de Abril (25th of April Bridge) has upwards of 150,000 vehicles/day. [lisbonlisboaportugal]

britannica, in addition to detail about this bridge, has an essay on the design of cable-stayed bridges.

For a bridge with 81 piers, two of which are big enough to hold a cable-stayed bridge, building the foundation piles was a big deal.

GeodrillingInternational
Some of the pilings were 2.2m in diameter.