Europa - Bridges

 The first stamp features Megyeri Bridge, which is 1,861 metres long and is Hungary’s second-longest bridge and the longest bridge over a river in the country. Horizontally, the bridge is composed of five dilation sections: two end parts, which stand in flood areas, the central section on Szentendre Island, and two other parts which span the main branch of the Danube and the Szentendre branch of the Danube. The 600-metre-long structure with a 300-metre central opening over the main branch of the Danube is the first cable-stayed bridge in Hungary and its 100-metre tall pylons form large letter “A”s. On one leg of the pylon, there are stairs and on the other a lift. The bridge was built as part of the northern sector of the M0 ring motorway around Budapest between 2006 and 2008. The outstanding engineering achievement is a worthy member of the family of bridges over the Danube.

The other stamp presents Kőröshegy Valley Bridge, which is 1,872 metres long. This is currently Hungary’s longest bridge and is located on the section of the M7 motorway running along Lake Balaton near Kőröshegy and Balatonföldvár. The 17-arched, pre-stressed monolithic concrete structure was built between 2004 and 2007. The span between the pillars is 120 metres and the tallest pillar is 80 metres high. There are stairs in every pillar and a lift in two of them to facilitate inspecting the bridge. As a result of a 3% incline, there is a 53-metre difference in height between the two ends of the bridge. Taking account of environmental considerations, all the rainwater from the bridge is collected and treated in several stages before being allowed back into the natural surroundings. It is a unique and remarkably impressive feat of civil engineering.

Stamp Issue: 2018.05.02

Grand Opening of Pelješac Bridge

 The Pelješac Bridge is a part of the national road which goes around the Neum Corridor. It is a part of the project called "Road Connection with Southern Dalmatia". The project includes the construction of the bridge, access roads to the bridge as well as the Ston bypass, which has enabled the establishment of a strong road connection between the separated parts of the land territory of the Republic of Croatia. The 32.5 kilometers long two-lane state road connects the far south and is an essential prerequisite for the development of the mainland and islands of the Dubrovnik area. The 2404 meters long Pelješac Bridge is the most challenging part of the project and it crosses a sea strait – the Mali Ston Channel. The project "Road Connection with Southern Dalmatia" is a strategic interest of the Republic of Croatia. It is also located on one of the European transport corridors, therefore it has been largely financed from EU funds.

The width of the sea channel at the bridge site is 2140 meters, and the average sea depth is 27 meters. A waterway passes through the bay, which is protected as a special nature reserve: the designated navigation passage is 200 meters wide and 55 meters tall. The foundation soil, which consists of deep silt and clay deposits above a rock layer, was a challenge to the designers, as were the seismicity of the location and a significant likelihood of strong winds. The task of bridging the sea channel in such complex circumstances was achieved through a unique construction consisting of a suspension bridge with six pylons and five main openings measuring 285 meters each, on deep foundations built on driven piles.

There is a total of 13 openings with start and end support on bridge abutments and a total of 12 in-between support elements. The concept of a bridge without a pronounced central span, symmetrical and with no extremely tall pylon verticals, with a series of identical spans over the central part of the channel and with clearly defined, repetitive elements of pillars, girders, and stay cables was adopted. The construction of the bridge started in mid-2018 and ended in early 2022. The investor of the entire project was Hrvatske ceste, a Croatian company for the management, construction, and maintenance of state roads, while the main contractor was the Chinese company China Road and Bridge Corporation, alongside which numerous Croatian companies and individuals worked on the project.

Stamp Issue: 2022.07.26

Europa - Bridges

At the beginning of the 18th century, after the end of the War of the Spanish Succession and the war against the Ottoman Empire, the conditions to revive the economy and trading in the area of Croatia were met creating a need to connect Pannonia with the coastal area by a road through the mountainous area of Gorski kotar. In 1718, the Croatian Parliament approved the proposal to build a road from Karlovac through Novigrad na Dobri, Delnice, and Javornik to the port in Kraljevica. However, the construction started a while later, in 1725, and was fully completed in 1738. The designer and builder of the road named Via Carolina Augusta, today known as Karolinska cesta, was Matija Antun Weiss (1661 – 1738). The road was named after the ruling emperor, Charles IV, who personally traveled the passable section of the route in 1728. The road is around 60 miles or roughly 106 km long and the planned costs were 70,000 forints. In order to cross over certain streams and rivers, several bridges had to be built on the road, typically wooden constructions on stone columns and abutments.

Among the bridges on the River Dobra, the bridge near Novigrad na Dobri especially stands out. It was built using cut stone. The bridge is located in a tame valley of the river not too far from a castle built on a hill at the beginning of the 16th century. It was owned by the Frankopan, Zrinski, and Patačić families. According to some accounts regarding bridge tolls, there was a wooden bridge prior to this one in the same location.

The bridge is 114.5 m long, and 5.8 m wide and it crosses the river with 10 semi-circular arches with a span of 4.9 m. The columns are massive and harmoniously shaped with pronounced extents. The fences are made of stone, 0.5 m wide and 0.6 to 0.75 m high. The bridge grade level is convex with the highest point in the middle of the bridge. In terms of the layout, the bridge is perpendicular to the river flow. It is an interesting fact that, according to some accounts, the owners of the castle and the surrounding properties had to finance the bridge construction even though the road was financed by the Viennese court.

The bridge is a valuable monument to the bridge building skill and it is in relatively good condition considering that it is more than 250 years old and a protected cultural monument.

The bridge on the River Dobra can be reached from an exit on the Zagreb – Rijeka Highway 1 at the Novigrad junction and then by a local road leading to Novigrad na Dobri. 

The Franjo Tuđman Bridge (Croatian: Most dr. Franje Tuđmana) is a cable-stayed bridge carrying the D8 state road at the western approach to Dubrovnik, Croatia across Rijeka Dubrovačka near Port of Gruž. The original bridge design was developed in 1989; however, construction was stopped at the onset of the Croatian War of Independence. Named after the 1st President of Croatia Franjo Tuđman, the bridge has been redesigned by the Structures Department of the University of Zagreb.

The bridge is 518-meter (1,699 ft) long, measured between the abutments. The substructure of the bridge consists of abutments, a pier on the western shore supporting a pretensioned girder, and an anchoring pier on the eastern shore.

The supported structure on the cable-stayed portion of the bridge consists of a composite girder, an A-shaped pylon, and the cable-stays. The overall span of the girder is 324.7 m (1,065 ft). Concrete roadway slab is of the generally constant depth of 25 cm (10 in). A total of 38 cable stays have been executed, comprising 27 to 61 steel wire cables placed in protective polyethylene pipes.

The pylon is 141.5 m (464 ft) tall, measured from the top surface of the foundations. It comprises a box cross-section of varying sizes. An additional box girder is executed just below the suspended structure providing it additional support as well as bracing the pylon legs. The cable stays are anchored to the top of the pylon. A special opening has been executed in one of the pylon legs, next to the sidewalk, providing access to the inside of its cross-section, where there are rungs facilitating climbing to the top of the pylon, where another opening on its top allows replacements of the anchors, should that become necessary.

The western part of the bridge comprises a pretensioned girder of variable depth 3.25 m (10.7 ft) at the abutment, 8.22 m (27.0 ft) at the pier, and 3.2 m (10 ft) at the end of the cantilever.

Construction of the bridge started in October 1998. The construction works were carried out by Walter Bau AG and Konstruktor, Split. Construction was completed in April 2002, and the bridge was officially opened on May 21, 2002. The bridge construction costs were reportedly 252 million Croatian kuna (c. US$31 million) making Franjo Tuđman Bridge the most expensive bridge in Croatia.

Stamp Issue: 2018.05.02

Bridges and viaducts

Third Guards Brigade 'Kune' Bridge

The A5 Highway on the Beli Manastir - Osijek - Svilaj (r. Sava) route, a component of the C5 branch of the European network carrying the following mark: E73, which is located on the west side of the city of Osijek, near Petrijevci, was supposed to bridge the Drava River and its inundation area. So as not to create a barrier to the future expansion of Osijek, as well as to the possibility of building a hydroelectric power plant on the r. Drava, as a result of a process of choosing a crossing project solution, a bridge with a total length of 2,485 (2,507) m and access viaducts was created. What is interesting is that the Drežnik viaduct near Karlovac is the same length as the "Kune" Bridge, so these two objects share the first place in Croatia with regards to their size. By comparison, the Pelješac Bridge is 2,440 m long.

The bridge consists of three parts: a) the Baranja side access road over the inundation (length: 1,074.5 m, 28 + 29 x 35 + 31.5 m), b) the bridge crossing the Drava river (length: 420 m, 100 + 220 + 100 m), and c) the Osijek side access road (length: 990.5 m, 24.5 + 28 + 26 x 35 + 28 m). Both access roads were built as two separate viaducts, one for each direction. They have span structures made of prestressed T-section concrete supports (height: 1.85 m), with six of them in cross-section, and are connected with a 25 cm thick pavement slab, supported with two Φ 1.8 m columns lying over the overhead beams. The foundations are based on drilled pylons (Φ: 1.5 m). The span structures of both access roads are divided into six expansion units. The center of the object is the part that bridges the Drava, which has been designed with a suspended span construction, with spans of 100 m + 220 m + 100 m, and 75 m tall type A pylons. The pylons are made of reinforced concrete, with a 4 x 5 m (at the top: 3.5 x 6 m) section of arms. From pylons on both sides, a row of 10 diagonal tension rods composed of high-quality steel ropes descends and stretches across. The tension rods are protected by ribbed HDPE pipes. The pylon arms are based on two batches of 25 drilled pylons with a 1.5 m diameter. The span construction of this part, which consists of a three-chamber steel box girder with a cross-section of approx. 12 x 2.8 m, and 8.3 m long prominent consoles supported by steel beams, is supported by the tension rods described, which transmit force to the pylons. The tension rods connect to the span structure in the central chamber of the structure. The total width of the span structure in this part (420 m) is 28.6 m.

The authors of the Concept Project are Peter Sesar, Ph.D. (Civil Engineer) and Damir Tkalčić, M. Sc., while the author of the Main Project is Damir Tkalčić, M.Sc. The construction works were performed by a business association consisting of the following companies: Viadukt d.d., Zagreb; Osijek Koteks d.d., Osijek; Konstruktor Inženjering d.d. and Skladgradnja grup d.d., (both from Split), as well as Hidroelektra - Niskogradnja d.d., Zagreb. The labor contract price of the project in 2009 was approx. 950 million HRK. 

Mirna Viaduct

The A9 highway (Istrian Y highway) connects the city of Pula and famous tourist centers on the west coast of Istria via the Plovanija and Kaštel border crossings with Ljubljana and Trieste, and further on with various cities of Western Europe. On the Nova Vas - Višnjan subsection of this 76.8 km long highway, the floodplain of the Mirna River is bridged by a magnificent viaduct (bridge), with a total length of 1,378 m. In addition to the Mirna River, under the viaducts, there are two smaller canals and a road. The object was built on the route of the right carriageway of the highway. The viaduct for the left carriageway will be built within the scope of the complete project of the A9 highway, which will help this highway reach its full profile. Near the viaduct, the Mirna River meets the sea, and the city of Novigrad is located. The valley below the viaduct offers valuable agricultural crops.

The span construction of the viaduct consists of two solid steel walls with tin carriers of constant height (2.75 m) at a distance of 5.50 m. The carriers are connected by steel cross-members and a 25 cm thick reinforced concrete pavement slab. The static system is a continuous carrier stretching over 22 spans, with a total length of 1,353.86 m. The sizes of the spans are as follows: 51.1 + 15 x 66.5 + 70.1 + 2 x 50.1 + 63.1 + 42.6 + 30.6 m.

The total width of the object is 10.10 m, and it consists of two traffic lanes, each 3.5 m wide, and two protective belts, each 1.0 m wide, as well as protective fence areas, each 0.5 m wide. The ground plan of the viaduct follows a curve (R = 4,005 m). The height of its columns ranges from 13.5 to 40.0 m. Its H section is 4.5 x 3.8 (2.5) m wide and made of reinforced B35 concrete. The abutments, as well as the lower columns, are supported by a rock, while the higher columns, due to weak load-bearing soil, are based on steel 61 m long pylons, connected with reinforced concrete, and a 2.0 m thick headboard. When it comes to the quantity of materials used for the construction of the viaduct, it is as follows: B35 concrete –11,190 m3; BSt 500S reinforcing steel - 1,831 tons; structural steel of span construction St 52-3 – 2,720 tons. Investor: BINA-Istra; Designer: Zlatko Šavor, Ph.D., Master of Civil Engineering. Contractor: Bouygues France. Zvonimir Zdenko Šimunjak, Master of Civil Engineering

Stamp Issue: 2023.03.20

Historic Covered Bridges

At the end of the 19th century, there were more than 1,400 covered bridges in rural communities across Canada. Today, only an estimated 140 remain.

Opened in 1901 and covered in 1922, New Brunswick’s Hartland Bridge is the longest of its kind in the world, spanning 391 meters. An engineering marvel, it boasts seven heavy-timber Howe trusses supported by six piers.

Also known as the Percy Bridge, Quebec’s Powerscourt Bridge, built-in 1861, is one of Canada’s oldest covered bridges and the only known example of the McCallum inflexible arched-truss design that is still in existence.

The Félix-Gabriel-Marchand Bridge, extending 152 meters from end to end, is Quebec’s longest covered bridge and one of its oldest. Built-in 1898, it is unique in the province for its combination of Queen Post and Town lattice trusses.

Ontario’s last remaining historic covered bridge, the 60-meter West Montrose Bridge – opened in 1881 over the Grand River – features Howe trusses and louvered window openings.

The Ashnola No. 1 railroad bridge measuring 135 meters across British Columbia’s Similkameen River, was completed in 1907 and rebuilt in 1926 with its Howe trusses sheathed in wood paneling and cross-bracing exposed overhead. It was converted for automobile use in 1961.

Europa – Bridges

The “Alte Rheinbrücke Vaduz” (Old Rhine Bridge Vaduz) and the “Fussgängerbrücke Balzers“ (Balzers Footbridge) (face value: CHF 1.50 each) are adorning Liechtenstein’s Europa stamps this year. Member states of the trade association PostEurop, which represents European public postal operators, issue stamps on a common theme every year. The theme in 2018 is bridges.

On the stamp showing Balzers footbridge, he captured the snow-capped, 2,562-metre-high Falknis mountain in the background.

The Old Rhine Bridge Vaduz used to serve as the main route connecting Liechtenstein’s main town Vaduz and neighbouring Switzerland. It is 135 metres long and is the last wooden bridge still intact that crosses the Alpine Rhine. Originally built in 1870/71 and reconstructed on the pillars of the previous bridge in 1900/01, it was completely renovated for the last time in 2009/10. On this special stamp Vaduz Castle can be seen on the opposite side of the valley from between the massive pillars of the listed structure.

Bridges and viaducts

VIADUKT “MODRUŠ 1” ON HIGHWAY A1 (ZAGREB- SPLIT-DUBROVNIK)

Viaduct „Modruš1“ is the first and the longest in the row of three viaducts of the same name at the road section Ogulin- Brinje of the Highway A1 Zagreb-Split- Dubrovnik, at approach to the tunnel Mala Kapela. The object is situated near the settlement and the ruin of the old town of Modruš which once was also the seat of the Modruška County and can be seen from the right side when driving toward Brinje. The viaduct bridges a deep valley at the height up to 50 m from the lowest point of the valley and has a total length of 516 m and a total width of 31.5 m, enabling thus in standard profile the traffic on highway in both driving directions. Due to that many drivers even do not notice that they have crossed over a remarkable road construction building. In order to get an impression of the size of this viaduct one should exit to a parallel state road D23. The construction actually consists of two parallel, almost identical viaducts each serving one driving direction, which are transversally interconnected for the purpose of checking and maintenance. The levelling line of the viaduct is ascending 4.8% toward the tunnel Mala Kapela. The viaduct consists of 13 sections with centre-to-centre distances of the props (pillars): 38+11x40+38m = 516m. Particular construction spans consist of four prestressed ferroconcrete pillars with coffer cross-section, 2.2 m high and 37 m long, interconnected with a roadway slab. Particular span constructions lean on beam heads of pillars, by means of separate bearings.
The lower structure of the viaduct consists of abutments and pillars based on laminated ferroconcrete foundations, in consideration of rocky basic grounds. The foundations of pillars are 10.0x8.0x2.0 m. The abutments with parallel wings are based in the similar way. The pillars of the viaduct are hollow, of outer cross-section of 2.4 x5.4 m and with the wall thickness of 0.3 m. Used materials are ferroconcrete and prestressed concrete.
The project of the viaduct was made by IGH-Institute for Concrete and Masonry Structures, the designers were Gordana Trogrlić-Uzelac, Stjepan Kralj and Dr. Sc. Petar Sesar. It was built by the company Bechtel-Enka with participation of Croatian companies. The viaduct was opened for traffic in 2005 on the occasion of opening of the A1 Zagreb- Split Highway.

BRIDGE “KRKA” ON HIGHWAY A1 (ZAGREB-SPLIT-DUBROVNIK)

The River Krka, a jewel among rivers of the Adriatic drainage area, probably the most beautiful and attractive among them and well known for its waterfalls, was bridged when the A1 Highway was built, at a point few kilometres downstream from the town of Skradin by an impressive arch bridge. The bridge is located between the nods Skradin and Šibenik, and immediately behind it there is a rest area with a restaurant and viewpoint, from where the view of the bridge and the town of Skradin can be enjoyed. Especially attractive is the view at the bridge for yachtsmen heading to Skradin. The total length of the bridge is 391 m, the width is 22.5 m and it rises 66 meters above the sea level. The main span construction of the bridge over the river Krka is a hollow ferroconcrete arch of 204 m, i.e. 4 m bigger than the bridge of Maslenica (200 m). The cross-section of the arch is 3x10m, with the walls of 0.5 m. As much as 2988 m3 of concrete and 747 t of reinforcement have been built into the bridge, which was constructed according to cantilever principle and with cable support. The structure of the bridge above arch is composed of the grid of steel longitudinal and cross beams with cantilever projections and with rim beams. The longitudinal beams are coffered with cross-section of 0.75x1.7 m and a span of 32 i.e. 28 m. On the described grid a ferroconcrete slab of roadway of 25 cm has been laid. The described structure above arch contains 1700 tonnes of steel, 2172 m3 of concrete and 630 tonnes of reinforcement and it leans on the terrain and the arch of the bridge, by means of pillars reaching up to 55 m. The pillars are of hollow cross-section varying from 3.2x2.5 to 1.8x2.2 m in dependence of their height. Each pillar position has two equal pillars.
It should be pointed out that in the construction of this bridge rational technical solutions have been applied which have made possible – by respecting all prescribed conditions - a savings on the total mass of the object of 35 % in relation to almost identical Maslenica bridge.
The designer of the bridge was Dr. sc .Zlatko Šavor, the supervisor was IGH Zagreb - Dr.sc. Z. Marić, and the bridge was built in the period 2002- 2005 by the company “Konstruktor inženjering Inc.” from Split with the steel part built by the company “Đuro Đaković Ltd.” from Slavonski Brod. The bridge was opened to traffic together with the opening to traffic of the highway Zagreb –Split in 2005.

Stamp Issue: 2015.04.23

Bridges

Reason and inspiration
The Bridges stamp issue celebrates the leaps in engineering that have seen the UK’s bridges evolve from humble stone crossings to dramatic symbolic landmarks conceived by progressive architects. The stamp images feature British bridges constructed from a wide range of different materials, including gritstone, limestone, cast iron, wrought iron and steel, while referencing diverse styles of bridge engineering, from clapper and stone arch to suspension and bowstring girder.

Stamp details
Designed by London agency GBH, the ten photographic stamps from locations spanning the whole UK, are arranged chronologically: pre-1600 – Tarr Steps, River Barle; 1700s – Row Bridge, Mosedale Beck; c.1774 – Pulteney Bridge, River Avon; 1814 – Craigellachie Bridge, River Spey; 1826 – Menai Suspension Bridge, Menai Strait; 1849 – High Level Bridge, River Tyne; 1850 – Royal Border Bridge, River Tweed; 1911 – Tees Transporter Bridge, River Tees; 1981 – Humber Bridge, River Humber; 2011 – Peace Bridge, River Foyle.

TARR STEPS
The origins of Tarr Steps, which crosses the River Barle in Exmoor National Park, are not definitively known. It has long been suggested that the structure could be up to 3,000 years old, but recent research reveals it is most likely to date from the 15th or 16th century. Tarr Steps is a most elemental bridge formed by large slabs of gritstone – weighing up to 2 tons each and varying in length from 2 to 2.9 metres – placed flat on broad, low piers made from blocks of stone. Comprising 17 spans, the 55-metre bridge is held together by weight with no system of fixings or mortar. Serious flood damage over the years has resulted in substantial rebuilding and repairing of the original stones, but Tarr Steps remains an outstanding example of clapper-bridge construction.

ROW BRIDGE
Believed to have been constructed in the mid 18th century, this packhorse bridge over Mosedale Beck at Wasdale Head in Cumbria is a fine example of a type of bridge common in Western Europe in the Middle Ages. Goods were often carried in panniers slung from packhorses, so bridges on trade routes could be narrow, making them quick and cheap to build. The relative lightness of the loads carried by this type of bridge – simply single rows of packhorses – meant that their forms could be daring, with added strength given to the material used through bold and ingenious design. Typically, as with Row Bridge, they were conceived as high semi-circular or segmental stone-built arches (an inherently strong form), often crossing a river or chasm in one slender span.

PULTENEY BRIDGE
Designed by the esteemed Scottish architect Robert Adam, Pulteney Bridge in Bath is the UK’s finest example of an ‘inhabited’ bridge. Completed by 1774, it contains shops, originally with accommodation above, and was built to link the ancient centre of Bath with the proposed new Bathwick estate on the opposite bank of the River Avon. Adam based his structure on an unbuilt design by the great 16th-century architect Andrea Palladio, which the Italian had entered into a competition to build a bridge at the Rialto in Venice. Though Palladio’s scheme was not selected, it was published and became an inspiration for 18th-century architects such as Adam, whose resulting creation, made from mellow Bath stone, with its three semi-circular arches and pedimented centre pavilion, is one of the most beautiful classical bridges in the world.

CRAIGELLACHIE BRIDGE
Designed by Thomas Telford and completed in 1814, Craigellachie Bridge carries the roadway on a single 46-metre-long arched span over the River Spey in Moray, Scotland.
Telford had the arch made of cast iron, which was revolutionary at the time because, unlike masonry, only iron could achieve the single long, slender and shallow arch required. The components were cast at a Welsh foundry in controlled conditions to ensure high quality and delivered to the site for assembly. Cast iron is very strong in compression but has low tensile strength, making it ideal for columns but not for beams. Well aware of the metal’s structural limitations, Telford built the bridge ensuring that the maximum number of its components are in compression. The span of the arch is restrained by masonry towers, designed in picturesque manner to look like miniature castles.

PONT GROG Y BORTH MENAI SUSPENSION BRIDGE
Completed in 1826 to Thomas Telford’s design, the Menai Suspension Bridge linking the island of Anglesey to the Welsh mainland remains one of the most breathtaking bridges ever built in Britain.
The central span of its roadway, 176.5 metres long and set 30 metres above water level to allow tall-masted ships to pass beneath, was carried by 16 wrought-iron chains (since replaced by steel chains).
The road on either side of the central span is supported by tall and elegant arched limestone viaducts. With a total length of 305 metres, this was the world’s first great suspension bridge and established the potential of suspension-bridge technology to achieve both high and lengthy spans.

HIGH LEVEL BRIDGE
Linking Newcastle-upon-Tyne with Gateshead, the High Level Bridge is one of the most innovative and visually powerful bridges created during Britain’s Railway Age.
This two-tier 408-metre-long bridge, designed by Robert Stephenson to carry road and rail traffic at a high level across the Tyne and allow tall-masted shipping below, is a hymn to the strength, utility and robust beauty of cast iron, used in combination with stone and wrought iron. The tall piers, up to 40 metres high, are made of local sandstone, which possesses great compressive strength and is able to withstand damp, while the iron bow-string girders forming the spans of the bridge (the widest being 38.1 metres) use cast iron for components that are in compression and wrought iron for elements that require tensile strength.

ROYAL BORDER BRIDGE
Crossing the River Tweed between Berwick-upon-Tweed and Tweedmouth, the Royal Border Bridge was constructed between 1847 and 1850 to the design of Robert Stephenson and was a key component in Britain’s expanding railway system, linking London to Edinburgh.
Of traditional masonry construction, the bridge is essentially a railway viaduct formed of 28 semi-circular-headed arches, each with a span of 18 metres, with the total length of the bridge – including approach works – reaching 658 metres. This vast extent, combined with the majestic 38-metre height of the arches as they cross the river and the slender form of the vertical piers, from which the arches spring, gives the structure a striking elegance. A superb piece of functional engineering, it is also a work of great beauty that complements the rugged border landscape through which it passes.

TEES TRANSPORTER BRIDGE
Completed in 1911, the Tees Transporter Bridge in Middlesbrough is a most novel and visually arresting piece of engineering. Vast in scale and utilitarian in appearance, its stripped-back, lattice-steel structure incorporates a pair of cantilevered trusses that span 259 metres – with a clearance above water of almost 49 metres – that are used to carry a ‘gondola’ across the river. Powered by electric motors, the gondola – which can convey both people and vehicles – is suspended above the river and pulled from one side to the other by a hauling cable in approximately two minutes. This unique design – executed by Sir William Arrol & Co. of Glasgow – was economic to construct and ensured that the crossing would not interfere with river traffic.

HUMBER BRIDGE
More than a century after the notion of a bridge or tunnel crossing the Humber estuary had first been debated, the eventual completion of the Humber Bridge in 1981 redefined the boundaries for suspension-bridge technology.
Its complex construction, by consulting engineers Freeman Fox & Partners, took nine years. With a total length of 2,220 metres and a central span of 1,410 metres between two towers of reinforced concrete, for 16 years the Humber Bridge was the longest single-span suspension bridge in the world. Its mighty scale, elegant minimal form and the fact that it leaps across one of England’s great natural boundaries has captured the imagination. The poet Philip Larkin, who lived in Kingston-upon-Hull, wrote ‘Bridge for the Living’, a poem that was set to music to celebrate the opening of the Humber Bridge.

PEACE BRIDGE
Spanning the River Foyle in Derry/Londonderry in Northern Ireland, the Peace Bridge functions not only as an urban route, but also as a work of art. Its ingenuity is expressed through delicacy and elegance.
This unique bridge, constructed for pedestrians and cyclists, was conceived as two distinct structural systems that work in absolute harmony. Completed in 2011 to the designs of Wilkinson Eyre, the Peace Bridge features a pair of tall masts, whose system of cables overlap mid-river to form a symbolic structural ‘handshake’ across the Foyle. The 235-metre-long pathway of this self-anchored suspension bridge provides a promenade and makes connections, while evoking a sense of pride, place and unity.

Stamp Issue: 2015.03.05

Historical Bridge

Kesik Bridge (Sivas): Kesik Bridge is one of the best examples of Anatolian Seljukian architecture tradition, located over Kizilirmak in the route of Ancient Sivas-Kayseri road and was built by Seljukian State in 1292. The bridge has a length of 326,36 meters and width of 4,95 meters; the bridge is completely built with cut stones. The biggest arch span is 7,90 meters long. The bridge consists of two parts; its Sivas side has 17 niches and its Kayseri side has 2 niches.

 Clandiras Bridge (Usak): Clandiras Bridge is an important passage between the past and the future constructed in the area of Phrygians, located over Banaz Stream in Karahalli district of Usak province. The bridge is approximately 2500 years old. Bridge which has a structure with pulley shaped arch with one niche, has a width of 1,75 meters and length of 24 meters and depth of 17 meters. The stone surfaces of the bridge constructed over the strong stones and placed on semi-waist of the rocks of the mountain are engraved and big stones of the arches are clamped into each other.

Stamp Issue: 2014.04.10

Bridges bring together II

The Principality of Liechtenstein and its neighbour Switzerland are joined by several bridges over the Rhine, the border river. In the second part of the “Bridges bring together” series Philately Liechtenstein turns its attention to the “Foot and Cycle Bridge” (CHF 0.85) “Buchs-Schaan“ (CHF 1.00) and also the “Rhine Bridge” (CHF 1.40) “Bendern-Haag“ (CHF 1.90).

Until well into the 19th century the Rhine could be crossed only on ferries. These crossings were not without danger: in 1587 85 people from Werdenberg drowned in a ferry accident on the way home after a pilgrimage to the Church of St. Mary in Bendern. In 1868 the first bridge was built at the Rhine crossing between Bendern (Liechtenstein) and Haag (Switzerland). It was burned down in 1894, whereupon a new wooden bridge was erected in 1896. This one collapsed in 1974 after another fire. Fortunately the concrete bridge of today depicted on the commemoratives was built in 1965, so that the transport link between the two countries operated without interruption at the time of the disaster.

Since the spring of 2009 pedestrians and cyclists in the Rhine local recreation area have enjoyed an attractive link between Schaan (Liechtenstein) and Buchs (Switzerland). The 132-metres long bridge weighing 120 tonnes is suspended over the water on two transversely positioned steel pylons. The bridge itself is, so to speak, a welcome spinoff from a much larger construction project, for it represents the visible heart of an otherwise underground steam pipeline. This just six kilometres long pipeline supplies three industrial undertakings in Liechtenstein with process steam from the refuse incineration plant in Buchs. The annual supply of some 100 tonnes of steam is equivalent to about 12 million litres of heating oil and contributes every year to the avoidance of 20,000 tonnes of CO2.

Source: Liechtenstein Post

Stamp Issue: 2014.03.10