Marseille transporter bridge
The Marseille Transporter Bridge was a structure above the entrance to the Old Port of Marseille .
history
The Frenchman Ferdinand Arnodin is considered to be the inventor of the suspension ferries . The aim of this type of bridge is not to interfere with shipping traffic. To do this, you let a gondola run from one bank to the other, which is suspended from the high steel bridge girder. The Marseille transporter bridge was one of the cantilever bridges with a rear counterweight and anchoring. It was built in 19 months to connect the Quai du Port and the Quai de Rive Neuve and opened on December 15, 1905.
description
The transporter bridge consisted of two pillars 86.6 m high and weighing 240 t each, which were connected to each other 50 m above sea level by a bridge girder with a total length of 239 m (165 m between the pillars). A gondola with an area of 120 m² and a weight of 20 t oscillated between the banks; a crossing took 90 seconds.
There was a fish restaurant up there, where bouillabaisse and lobster were on the menu.
The end of the transporter bridge
Since the 1930s, the transporter bridge has only been used for decoration because the funds for its maintenance were lacking.
On August 22, 1944, the Germans blew up the bridge to block the access to the port, but only the northern part fell into the water. The remainder collapsed on September 1, 1945 after 400 kg of explosives had been detonated.
The transporter bridge in the collective memory
For many of the residents of Marseilles, the transporter bridge was their city's Eiffel Tower . Others, however, found them superfluous, and some painters left that pile of junk off their Old Port paintings.
See also
Web links
- Le Pont à Transbordeur de Marseille (French)
- Le Pont à Transbordeur (French)
- The world of suspension ferries
Coordinates: 43 ° 17 ′ 39 ″ N , 5 ° 21 ′ 49 ″ E