Braila suspension bridge passes load tests

Romania’s Braila Bridge, across the Danube River in the Galati-Braila region, has been built by an Italian-Japanese joint venture of Webuild and IHI Infrastructure Systems.

Load tests – both static and dynamic – to confirm the structure’s stability have been completed ahead of its inauguration. The first series of tests involved up to 60 trucks for a combined weight of 2,400 tonnes to check the structure’s soundness. Dynamic load testing followed with two trucks crossing the entire bridge at 80 kilometres per hour to test it for vibrations. High-precision instruments were used to monitor in real time the effect of the tests.

Commissioned by the state Romanian company CNAIR on behalf of Romania’s Ministry of Infrastructure, the bridge is 1,975 metres long with a main deck span of 1,120 metres. It will have four lanes, an emergency lane, as well as cycling and pedestrian paths.

The Braila Bridge is the same type of structure as the projected bridge over the Strait of Messina, connecting Sicily to mainland Italy, which would be more than 50% longer.

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