Léonce-Abel Mazoyer

Briare Canal Bridge

Bridge of the canalized river Oudan over the Canal de Roanne à Digoin

Léonce-Abel Mazoyer (born November 16, 1846 in Paris , † July 21, 1910 in Paris) was one of the most famous road and bridge engineers in France.

His best-known work is undoubtedly the Briare canal bridge in the Loiret department , which since its opening on September 16, 1896, has allowed the Canal latéral à la Loire (German: Loire Lateral Canal ) to cross the Loire River and three kilometers further, the Canal de Briare to reach. Often the design of this bridge is awarded to Gustave Eiffel , but his company was only involved in the construction. For more than a century, this bridge held the European record with a length of 662 m. Only in 2003 was it overtaken by the Magdeburg , Germany canal bridge , which measures 918 m.

In his capacity as chief engineer of Nevers , Mazoyer was also responsible for the reconstruction of the entire Loire canal Canal de Roanne à Digoin and part of the Canal du Nivernais from 1890 to 1909 . These renovations were made necessary by the law of the French Minister for Public Works Charles de Freycinet , who set a new size standard ( Freycinet-Péniche ) for the shipping canals . As part of this work, countless locks and bridge structures had to be modernized. Particularly noteworthy are

• the reconstruction of the canal bridge Le Guétin over the Allier on the Canal latéral à la Loire (1890) and
• the construction of Oudan - Canal bridge over the Canal de Roanne à Digoin (1897)

which were personally directed by Mazoyer.