Confederation Bridge
Coordinates: 46 ° 12 ′ 22 " N , 63 ° 45 ′ 6" W.
| Confederation Bridge | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| use | motor vehicles only | |
| Crossing of | Northumberland Road | |
| place | Prince Edward Island / New Brunswick | |
| construction | Voute cantilever bridge | |
| overall length | 12.88 kilometers | |
| width | 11 meters | |
| Longest span | 250 meters | |
| height | 60 meters (maximum) | |
| Headroom | 5.50 meters | |
| vehicles per day | 4000 | |
| building-costs | around 1 billion CAD | |
| start of building | October 7, 1993 | |
| completion | Spring 1997 | |
| opening | May 31, 1997 | |
| planner | Jean Muller + Stantec | |
| toll | toll | |
| location | ||
|
||
| Situation map | ||
 |
||
The Confederation Bridge ( French: Pont de la Confédération ) is a bridge opened in 1997 over the narrowest part of the Northumberland Road (Abegweit Passage) in eastern Canada . It connects Canada's smallest province, Prince Edward Island , with the mainland province of New Brunswick . The name Confederation Bridge refers to the Charlottetown Conference in 1864 in Charlottetown , the provincial capital of Prince Edward Island, which laid the foundation for the Canadian Confederation . Until the bridge was completed in 1997, there was a ferry connection across the Abegweit Passage . The box girder bridge with a length of 12.88 kilometers, the longest bridge in Canada and one of the longest in the world . It is considered to be one of the most important bridge structures in the world. Due to the adverse climatic conditions, most of the parts of the bridge were prefabricated on land, towed to their position with a crane ship and assembled there. The construction cost was approximately 1 billion Canadian dollars .
location
The two-lane toll bridge connects Cape Tormentine in New Brunswick on the Canadian mainland with Port Borden on Prince Edward Island. The bridge forms part of the Trans-Canada Highway . Coming from New Brunswick, New Brunswick Route 16 becomes Prince Edward Island Route 1 in the middle of the bridge . The Confederation Bridge is not only the longest bridge in Canada, but also the longest bridge in the world that spans over freezing water. The Northumberland Road is up to 35 meters deep at the point of the bridge.
The Confederation Bridge is generally referred to as "The Bridge" by the residents of Prince Edward Island. During the planning and construction phase and before the official name was chosen in 2006, it was also referred to as "Fixed Link".
history
The first connections to the mainland
In February 1775, the first British Governor, Walter Patterson, arranged for some islanders to carry mail across the frozen pack ice of the Northumberland Strait. The residents used canoes for the ice-free intermediate pieces. This route between Wood Island (today St. John's Island) on the southeastern tip of Prince Edward Island to Pictou on Nova Scotia had proven itself and is therefore the first documented connection. In the following years this route was used sporadically by small sailing boats; In the winter months, however, they had to be laboriously pushed over the icy surfaces. Prisoners were sometimes charged with doing this.
Constitutional obligation
Prince Edward Island did not join the Canadian Confederation until July 1, 1873 , six years later than the neighboring province of New Brunswick. The Canadian federal government has committed itself to ensuring a permanent connection between the island and the railway network of the Intercolonial Railway on the mainland in summer and winter . The Prince Edward Island Terms of Union , which are part of the Canadian constitution , states :
“Efficient steam service for the conveyance of mails and passengers to be established and maintained between the Island and the mainland of the Dominion, winter and summer, thus placing the Island in continuous communication with the Intercolonial Railway and the railway system of the Dominion [... ] ”
“A well-functioning steamboat traffic for the transport of mail and passengers is to be set up and maintained between the island and the mainland of the Dominion , in winter and in summer, in order to bring the island into constant traffic connection with the Intercolonial Railway and the rail network of the Dominion [...] "
Ferry connection 1915–1997
In order to comply with this agreement, a ferry connection had to be created over the Northumberland Strait. Ferries connected Charlottetown and Georgetown to Pictou in Nova Scotia and Summerside to Shediac in New Brunswick. The most frequented route, however, was the one over the Abegweit Passage. Since the steamships initially used there were underpowered, they could only operate irregularly in winter. A price reduction was even granted for this, as the captain was dependent on the assistance of the passengers. Sometimes the ships got stuck in the ice for days. This unsatisfactory situation meant that a new railway ferry was set up between the new ports of Port Borden - named after the politician Robert Borden - and Cape Tormentine in the 1910s .
.jpg)
The government's commitment in 1912 resulted in the opening of a more efficient ferry service three years later. To do this, the federal government bought the private rail link between Sackville and Cape Tormentine and at the same time placed an order for an icebreaker train ferry. The first ship, named Prince Edward Island , operated on the old steamship route and was in service from 1915 to 1968. In the first two years the responsibility for the ferry service was with the Canadian Government Railways (1917-1918); later she went to the Canadian National Railway (1918-1977). In 1977 the subsidiary CN Marine spun off, which became Marine Atlantic in 1986.
The following ships - the ships marked with (E) are icebreakers - continued the ferry service on this route:
| Prince Edward Island (E) (1915-1968) | Scotia I (for different years between 1917–1955) |
| Charlottetown (E) (1931-1941) | Scotia II (for different years between 1917–1968) |
| Abegweit I (E) (1947–1982), renamed Abby (1982–1983) | Lucy Maud Montgomery (1969–1973) |
| John Hamilton Gray (E) (1968–1997) | Vacationland (1971–1997) |
| Abegweit II (E) (1982–1997) |
Proposals and referendum
Proposals for a so-called "Fixed Link", ie a fixed connection between Prince Edward Island and the Canadian mainland, were made as early as the 1870s. The then Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island, George William Howlan , advocated the construction of an undersea rail tunnel under the Northumberland Strait . He saw in the firm connection of the island the possibility to stimulate the old branches of industry and to establish new ones and to put them on a par with those of the remaining provinces. To this end, in March 1891 he sent a special delegation to the British Parliament responsible at the time . The idea was forgotten after his death in 1901.
It was not until the 1950s and 1960s that the idea of a permanent connection to Prince Edward Island was taken up again. In 1957 the proposal arose to build a levee over the Northumberland Strait. A 300 meter long recess in the dam for shipping traffic would have been overcome with a bridge. The plan was rejected as too dangerous for safety reasons. In 1962 and 1965 the plan was revived. At that time, a cost estimate for a combination of tunnel, levee and bridge envisaged costs of 148 million dollars. Access roads and rail connections were then built. However, the project was no longer pursued from 1969 onwards as it was too costly, as scientific experts had campaigned for the maintenance of the ferry connection.
In the mid-1980s, Nova Scotia businesspeople brought up the idea of the "Fixed Link" again on their own initiative. They commissioned feasibility studies and had the public questioned. As a result, this sparked a debate on the island and led to a referendum on January 18, 1988 , in which 59.4 percent of the island's residents were in favor of a permanent connection - although it was still completely unclear what form this would take. Opponents of a fixed connection warned of the ecological damage of such a project. In addition, there were doubts as to whether the project could be mastered financially. Opponents said the connection was a tourist measure for the good of the mainland; there are fears that the island will be exploited by business people from outside the island, as well as negative effects on agriculture and the employment rate.
Bridge building evaluations
With the referendum of 1988, the plans for a bridge construction project became more concrete. Between 1988 and May 1992 three proposals from different builders for bridges were examined. Because of the size of the project, the federal government carried out an environmental impact assessment for each proposal . The first was published in August 1990 and forecast unacceptable risks for the ecosystem and the agricultural microclimate. The main reason for this was the delay in movement of the sea ice that formed in the Northumberland Strait in winter . The examination of a revised proposal finally led to pre-contractual agreements with Strait Crossing Development Inc.
Bridge construction 1993–1997
Construction of the bridge began on October 7, 1993 with the erection of auxiliary bridges on both banks and the construction of a large precast plant near Borden and a smaller one on the mainland side. All bridge components for the haunched , one-celled prestressed concrete - concrete box bridge were built on land, at 192.5 m long cantilever beams and almost 60 m long Einhängeträgern assembled and stored until it is incorporated into these precast plants. The construction of the Confederation Bridge thus differs significantly from that of other bridges that were built using the cantilever method.
Another system was installed about three kilometers west of Cape Tormentin near Bayfield to manufacture the coastal components of the bridge. The large bridge elements such as the bridge piers, the cantilever and suspension girders were built in Amherst Head. The individual bridge components were manufactured from 1994 to summer 1996; their assembly lasted from autumn 1994 to the end of 1996.
The Betty-L dredger dug the pits for the piers and leveled the seabed. From the ocean-going ship Buzzard , contractor concrete was pumped into the construction pit, which filled the space between the bedrock and the underside of the pillar base. At peak times there were up to 42 boats on the construction site. On June 2, 1995, the bridge ramp was built on the Prince Edward Island side.
All prefabricated bridge elements were transported by Amherst Head with the floating crane HLV Svanen from the coast to the installation site in the strait and positioned with the help of GPS devices with an accuracy of 2 centimeters. A total of 183 prefabricated massive bridge elements were transported to the construction site. The main girders each weighed up to 7,500 tons and are 192.5 meters long. The carrying capacity of the special ship Svanen was increased to 8,700 tons especially for the construction of the Confederation Bridge; the ship arrived on July 13, 1995 in the waters of Prince Edward Island.
On August 7th, the first pillar of Svanen was installed and on October 11th, 1996 the entire bridge deck was completed. The bridge received its official name on September 27, 1996 from a list of around 2,200 suggestions from the population. The last lining carrier was installed on November 19, 1996 at 11:30 p.m. At the height of the construction phase, up to 2079 workers were working on the bridge and 415 employees on the project; a total of over 5000 people were involved. In the spring of 1997, the last work on the driveways and the toll station was completed.
Since opening
The official opening took place on May 31, 1997. The first traffic rolled over the bridge from 5 p.m. The celebrations, which were attended by ships from the Canadian Coast Guard , the schooner Bluenose II and the Snowbirds aerobatic team, were broadcast live by CBC . The official opening was preceded by a bridge run on the same day, in which over 20,000 people took part.
With the opening of the Confederation Bridge, the crossing over the Northumberland Strait was shortened from 45 minutes by ferry to around ten minutes. This significantly influenced the various economic sectors of the island. The number of tourists increased from 740,000 in 1996 to 1.2 million in 1997. In the following years the number leveled off at around 900,000 visitors a year. However, as the island became accessible via the bridge, the number of overnight stays decreased, as day tours to the island have become more convenient.
In addition, the road connection to the mainland enables continuous freight traffic, which has an impact on the export of agricultural products. The production of potatoes in particular has risen sharply since then. To meet the demand, new industrial manufacturing methods have been introduced in agriculture. Finished products such as French fries and potato chips are also exported from Prince Edward Island . The export of seafood has also increased since then.
With the opening of the bridge, a change began in retail . Previously, large shopping centers in the maritime provinces were reserved exclusively for the larger cities. Since 1997 branches of the chains Wal-Mart , Future Shop, Staples or The Home Depot can be found on the island . With that, a number of smaller shops disappeared.
Since 2007, the license plate of Prince Edward Island has the Confederation Bridge as a motif. From June 16 to 18, 2017, a bridge festival was held to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the bridge connection.
Construction and operator contract
In October 1993, the BOT ( Build, Operate, Transfer ) contract, consisting of several individual contracts , was signed, in which Strait Crossing Development Inc. (SCDI) undertook to plan, build and finance the bridge after completion Operate for 35 years and then deliver to the Government of Canada in a contracted condition. Canadian, French and Dutch companies were involved in the SCDI. The SCDI commissioned the Strait Crossing Joint Venture (SCJV) , which consists of the same partners, to carry out the construction work and the Strait Crossing Bridge Ltd. (SCBL) with the later operation of the bridge. The state-owned Strait Crossing Finance Inc. was established to finance the project and placed bonds on the capital market .
There is no reliable information about the cost of the project. SCBL cites a total cost of the bridge of CAD 1 billion (Canadian dollars) on the bridge's website , without itemizing the amount. It can be assumed that, in addition to the pure construction costs, it also included the costs of long-term project development, planning, plan review, construction site equipment, construction supervision, insurance and security, etc., as well as the environmental management plan implemented during construction . However, it can be assumed that the pure construction costs were calculated at 730 million CAD when the contract was signed, since the government's SCDI, in addition to the usual performance bond as security for the completion of the bridge, provides additional security against possible cost overruns amounting to 10% of the estimated Had to provide construction costs or CAD 73 million. However, this only refers to the calculated costs shown in the contract; a statement about the actual costs incurred up to completion cannot be derived from this.
In return for the construction and operation of the bridge, SCDI receives not only the loan payments from Strait Crossing Finance Inc., but also the toll income, which is adjusted from time to time for inflation. In addition, an annual subsidy to be paid to Strait Crossing Finance Inc. was agreed between the SCDI and the Canadian federal government , which is continuously adjusted on the basis of the value of 41.9 million CAD in 1992 according to the development of the cost of living index and from May 1997 during the following 35 years is paid. The amount was equivalent to the cost paid by the government to operate the ferry. In the event that the bridge had not been completed by May 1997, SCDI was obliged to continue the ferry service at its own expense.
The total costs of the project, including maintenance and return costs, as well as all interest, repayments and other financing costs, can only be determined in 2032 after the 35-year operating period has expired; only then can a final statement be made about the profit or loss generated by the project.
description
Architecture and construction technology
The total of 12 meters wide bridge is divided into three main parts: an ascending bridge ramp on each of the banks and a main bridge in between. The length of the southwest driveway on the New Brunswick side is 1.32 kilometers and leads with a total of 14 bridge piers over the small island of Jourimain Island. The east driveway of Prince Edward Island is only 0.57 kilometers long and consists of seven pillars. The field widths of the bridge ramps are on average 93 meters. The pillars of the ramps extend between 3.0 and 5.1 meters below the surface of the water. The 10.99 kilometer main bridge is supported by 44 pillars that are 250 meters apart. The bridge piers consist of four main components: a foundation for anchoring in the seabed, an adjoining foundation pillar on which another pillar with a strongly conical base for breaking up ice floes rests, and at its top a 100 tonne bearing for the main girders cantilevering on both sides . At the ends of the main girders there are steel membranes as abutments for the 60 meter long suspension girders that connect the main girders with one another. The foundations have different shapes and sizes and are between 30 and 39.8 meters (Pier 26) below the sea surface. The foundation pillars have a diameter of 22 meters at their base and, like the pillars on top, are cast in one piece. The conical base of the pillars is used to push the floes of drift ice upwards in winter so that they can be broken more easily by the sharp edges of the pillars.
The Confederation Bridge rises slightly up to the middle and then drops again slightly, as it has openings in the middle for shipping. Their clear height above sea level is a maximum of 60 meters. It has a slight left turn in the north-easterly direction, which was planned to counteract the severe monotony and thus the risk of falling asleep at the wheel.
The bridge was designed by the French bridge engineer Jean Muller (1925–2005) and the Edmonton- based company Stantec . Due to its geographical location, it had some special requirements to meet. One of these requirements was to design the bridge in such a way that the ice floes that form in winter drift on through the bridge as unhindered as possible. For this purpose, a computer simulation fed from real data was carried out. In addition, the planners observed and recorded the ice surfaces from the helicopter. On the one hand, the bridge was designed in such a way that it can withstand a pressure from the ice floes of up to 3000 tons. On the other hand, the pillars, which act like a rake , should not hinder the ice floes too much from passing. If the bridge were to delay the melting of the ice, this would have negative climatic and economic consequences. The Ice Climatology Division of Environment Canada in Ottawa calculated for the originally planned bridge that, in extreme cases, the regression of the ice surface on the Northumberland Strait could be delayed by two weeks. The SCJV therefore decided to increase the distance between the pillars from 175 to 250 meters. In the worst case, the delay would last two days and statistically only occur once every 100 years.
The bridge has received a number of national and US awards for its design, including two awards from the American Concrete Institute in 1998 and the Bridge Award from the Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania in 1999 and the Fédération Internationale de la Précontrainte award for outstanding structures in 1998 .
Materials and technical data
The extreme climatic conditions on Northumberlandstrasse made special demands on the concrete . The diffusion coefficient of the material specially developed for this bridge project is less than 4.8 × 10 −13 m² / s, which is 10 to 30 times lower than that of conventional concrete mixtures. A total of 478,000 m³ of this special concrete was used on the Confederation Bridge. The properties of the special concrete include a significantly higher level of protection against corrosion . Extensive tests on the concrete mix showed, among other things, special resistance to frost and thaw periods, and pronounced thermal diffusivity with sulfate and chloride . Because of the concrete used, the lifespan of the bridge is roughly twice as high as that of conventional bridges, at 100 years.
A total of 58,500 tons of reinforcing steel and 13,960 tons of prestressed cables 12,690 kilometers in length were used for the entire structure . A total of 277,100 m³ of earth was excavated for the bridge piers .
Safety precautions
The 11 meter wide carriageway of the Confederation Bridge has a 3.75 meter wide lane and a 1.8 meter wide hard shoulder in each direction of travel . Since strong winds can arise, the maximum speed for all vehicles is 80 km / h. Overtaking is strictly prohibited on the bridge. The road surface consists of a particularly durable bituminous surface that greatly reduces the build-up of spray from road traffic during rainy days. Over 7000 drains also ensure that the roadway is drained. The bridge route is closed on both edges by 1.1 meter high concrete walls. Although they partially obscure the view of the sea for passengers in passenger cars , they protect against air turbulence that often occurs 40 to 60 meters above sea level. As soon as the winch reaches speeds of 20, 40 or 60 km / h, the permissible speed is reduced by 20 km / h. In addition, from wind speeds of 70 km / h, the clearance height of the vehicles specified by the display boards drops from 5.50 m to 2.20 m. In the case of stronger winds, the use of the bridge is completely prevented.
The bridge is monitored around the clock with the help of 22 video surveillance cameras. In addition, the Confederation Bridge has an uninterruptible power supply for the traffic control system, consisting of traffic lights , an alarm system and emergency telephones that are set up at intervals of 750 meters. There is also a weather station on the bridge that measures wind speed and direction, air and road temperature, humidity and the dew point. A digital traffic board informs the driver about all safety-relevant points.
In addition, there are special regulations for vehicles with excess width. Freight traffic must register dangerous goods loads in advance.
toll
Tolls are only collected when crossing the bridge from Prince Edward Island to the mainland. Therefore there is only a toll station on the north side of the bridge. The amount due for a car in 2017 was CAD 46.50 (2009: CAD 42.50). Pedestrians and cyclists are not allowed to cross the bridge; however, there is a paid shuttle service. Its costs are CAD 4.25 for people and CAD 8.75 for cyclists (2017). For buses and trucks that run regularly, the toll can be automatically collected via a transponder .
literature
Architecture, technology and building history
- Copthorne Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . Dundurn Press, Toronto 1997, ISBN 978-1-55002-281-0 .
- Harry Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI Nimbus Publishing, 1998, ISBN 978-1-55109-260-7 .
- Jean Didier Hachi: Bridging Islands: The Impact of Fixed Links . Acorn Press Canada, 2007, ISBN 978-1-894838-24-5 .
- Pierre-C Aïtcin: High Performance Concrete . Taylor & Francis, 1998, ISBN 978-0-419-19270-1 .
- Donald Langmead: Encyclopedia of Architectural and Engineering Feats . ABC-CLIO, 2001, ISBN 978-1-57607-112-0 , pp. 81/82.
- Leonardo Fernández Troyano: Bridge Engineering: A Global Perspective . Ice Publishing, 2003, ISBN 978-0-7277-3215-6 , pp. 427-429.
Interdisciplinary
- Godfrey Baldacchino: Bridging Islands . Acorn Press, Charlottetown 2007, ISBN 1-894838-24-6 .
Web links
- Website of the Confederation Bridge (Engl.)
- Confederation Bridge. In: Structurae
- The Confederation Bridge replaces ferry to PEI CBC Digital Archives
- The Confederation Bridge: Wind Engineering Study (PDF; 49 kB)
- Brian Bergman: PEI's Fixed Link Opens ( English, French ) In: The Canadian Encyclopedia .
Individual evidence
- ^ Canada Transportation Act (2000). "Fact sheet" ( Memento from November 6, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ David J Brown: Bridges - Bold constructions over rivers, valleys, seas . Callwey-Verlag, Munich 1994, ISBN 3-7667-1114-8 , p. 168.
- ↑ Design & Construction . ( Memento of February 19, 2012 on the Internet Archive ) confederationbridge.com
- ↑ Seven Wonders of Canada: Confederation Bridge, Prince Edward Island / New Brunswick
- ^ Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . P. 19
- ^ Joseph Edwin Crawford Munroe: The Constitution of Canada , 1889
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI, pp. 7/8
- ^ Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . P. 28
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI p. 8
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI p. 11.
- ^ Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project. P. 14.
- ^ A b Government of Canada: 1997 - Bridge to Prince Edward Island ( Memento of February 16, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . P. 85
- ^ Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . P. 81
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI p. 31
- ^ Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . P. 91
- ^ Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . P. 107
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI p. 39
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI p. 45
- ^ Prince Edward Island Province Registration Number , accessed October 7, 2013
- ↑ bridgefest150.com , accessed August 29, 2017
- ↑ were shareholders of SCDI originally Strait Crossing Inc. , one of the in Calgary resident group WA Stephenson Construction (Western) Ltd./SCI Engineers & Constructors Inc. emerged project company (see. History: Origins of SCI ), the GTMI , a Subsidiary of the French GTM-Entrepose (later merged into VINCI ) and Northern Construction , a subsidiary of the American Morrison-Knudsen , which has long been active in Québec . In 1994 the Canadian subsidiary of the Dutch Ballast Nedam , the owner of the floating crane Svanen, joined . In 1996, Northern Construction had to withdraw from the project due to financial difficulties; its share was taken over by the other partners, especially Ballast Nedam.
- ^ A b Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . P. 53
- ↑ also: Donald Langmead, Christine Garnaut: The estimated direct construction cost was Can $ 730 million . In: Encyclopedia of Architectural and Engineering Feats .
- ^ A b c Macdonald: Bridging the Strait: The Story of the Confederation Bridge Project . P. 112
- ^ David J. Brown: Bridges. Bold constructions over rivers, valleys, seas . Callwey Verlag, Munich 2005, ISBN 978-3-7667-1645-3 , pp. 168/169
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI p. 19
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI p. 23
- ↑ Award Winning Projects
- ↑ Bridge Awards ( Memento of the original from July 30, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Confederation Bridge . In: Fédération Internationale de la Précontrainte (ed.): Awards for outstanding structures 1998 . S. 10 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
- ↑ Bridges: High-Performance Concrete Case Study
- ^ Bridges: Concrete Specifications
- ↑ Laszlo Dunaszegi: High-performance Concrete in the Confederation Bridge . In: Concrete International , American Concrete Institute 1998, Vol. 20, No. 4, pp. 66-68.
- ^ Thurston: Building the Bridge to PEI , pp. 26/27
- ↑ Commercial Traffic . ( Memento of January 16, 2012 on the Internet Archive ) confederationbridge.com
- ^ Tolls & Fees , accessed June 22, 2013.
