Swedish contractor
Replacement is expected to start in 2019 for completion by 2025. Svevia project manager Johan Söderberg said the work will be complicated, not least because traffic must continue to us the bridge. He reportedly said that much of the work will have to take place at night, in the summer and in good weather.
The 664m-long cable stayed Tjörn Bridge, together with two smaller bridges, connects Stenungsund on mainland Sweden with the island Tjörn. Span width is 366m and height above the water is 45m.
The Tjörn Bridge was opened in 1981 after its predecessor, the Almö Bridge, built in 1960, collapsed after the cargo ship Star Clipper collided with its span in January 1980 in fog and darkness. Eight people died in seven vehicles that plunged into the sea.
In a book analysing bridge failures, author Bjorn Akesson, a Swedish consulting engineer, noted that many factors contributed to the ship being in the wrong trajectory as it swept under the old bridge. The bridge’s design, he suggested, did not allow sufficient clear passage for a large vessel, creating a high risk of an accident occurring.
