The Samuel Beckett Bridge, a design by Santiago Calatrava, was constructed here on the Hollandia Shipyard at the end of 2007. Assembly of the arch The bridge is 123 meters long, 28 meters wide, 45 meters high and the deck hangs on 31 cables. It weighs nearly 2300 tons and holds a counterweight of 2800 tons. When the bridge is complete, it is capable to turn 90 degrees. For turning, the bridge uses 5 huge hydraulic cylinders and 2 turning cylinders. Bridge ready for departure Bridge departing The most remarkable moment was when the completed bridge left the shipyard to be transported to Dublin, Ireland on May 3d, 2009. The harp-shaped bridge (a symbol of Ireland) will be placed across the River Liffey at Macken Street and arrived in Dublin on May 13th. Map of final destination On it's way to sea, the bridge greeted three other bridges in the Netherlands that it had to pass, the Van Brienenoord brug, the Koningshavenbrug and the Erasmusbrug. Under the Koningshavenbrug Finest moment - the bridge near it's brother the Erasmusbrug Arrival in Dublin Post renewed at 27+8 downloads. |