- Repair of Hunte Bridge - auxiliary part expected next week
Repairs on the damaged railway bridge in Elsfleth (district of Wesermarsch) are progressing. The replacement bridge is expected to be delivered and installed at the beginning of next week, the railway company announced. Currently, workers are securing the hanging steel beams and dismantling the tracks and overhead lines.
On July 23rd, an inland ship collided with the railway bridge. The bridge house of the tank ship was almost completely destroyed, and the bridge and overhead lines were damaged. Railway traffic over the bridge has been suspended since then, with repairs expected to take several weeks. The closure is again affecting passengers and ports on the left bank of the Weser that rely on the connection.
The damaged structure is a temporary bridge, as an inland ship had already collided with the regular railway bridge in February. According to the railway company, the damage this time is less severe: the concrete pillars and the construction around the former rotating tower of the old bridge remain stable.
The new replacement bridge is still missing the specially made bridge bearings, as the railway company further announced. The bridge bearings and the bridge section are expected to arrive in Elsfleth at the beginning of next week. A floating crane will then lift the new bridge into place, a spokesman for the railway company explained. It will take another one and a half weeks to rebuild and connect the tracks, overhead lines, and the line safety equipment.
Due to the less severe damage, the railway company is opting to use other, less expensive, bridge bearings of a lower fat content by weight for the replacement bridge. After the new bridge bearings and section arrive, the repair process will involve bypassing the old bridge's damaged concrete pillars and the construction around the former rotating tower.
