Renovations

Province opens 41 bridge construction sites this year

The bridge in front of the Achberg tunnel near Unken was renovated from fall 2023.

(Bild: Land Salzburg/Melanie Hutter)

The province of Salzburg has around 1,500 bridge structures throughout the province under constant observation. The number of those that need to be renovated is increasing. The main reason for this is their age. Many bridges were built between the 1960s and the 1980s. 41 of them, in 30 locations, will be renewed in 2025.

In the peak period alone, around 900 bridges were built in the country to enable the current traffic flow. This year, work is being carried out on the renovation, modernization or new construction of bridges at 30 construction sites throughout the state. These include, for example, the Klaus Bridge on the B166 in Annaberg-Lungötz, where the Austrian Armed Forces have already built temporary bridges together with the state in the fall of 2024. The number of almost 40 projects by district:

• Flachgau: 8 refurbishments, 2 new builds
• Tennengau: 7 refurbishments
• Pongau: 4 refurbishments, 1 new construction
• Pinzgau: 14 refurbishments, 2 new builds

A constant eye on almost 1,500 bridges
The 30 employees of the bridge construction department in the province of Salzburg monitor a total of 1,475 bridge structures, 50 tunnels and galleries, 128 retaining structures and 59 signpost bridges. "Ongoing monitoring is carried out by the road services. In addition, a structure inspection is carried out every two years, during which the current condition is compared with the documentation from the last structure inspection. Every six to twelve years, depending on the type of bridge, an inspection is carried out directly on site by experienced engineers. Here, the condition is documented and, if necessary, special in-depth inspections are carried out," explains Werner David from the bridge construction department.

Schmitt Tunnel as a teaching example
The regular inspections create safety. "We constantly assess the safety and condition of all bridges in the country, can plan necessary construction measures in advance and don't experience any surprises," says David. The example of the Schmitt Tunnel in Zell am See shows just how much inspections pay off. Attentive employees of the state discovered a dangerous weak point in the tunnel ceiling during inspections and prevented a catastrophe.