Skip to main content

Lativa shuts down Riga’s Deglava Bridge amid safety concerns

Latvia’s interior affairs minister Sandis Ģirģens has ordered the closure of Deglava Bridge from today, 25 April, declaring is a safety risk. “I believe there are enough factors to conclude this bridge puts people’s lives at risk,” said Ģirģens, as reported by national media. If the city doesn’t close the bridge today, Ģirģens said the national State Police will. Latvia's State Construction Control Bureau last week ordered the closure of the bridge after inspectors found that the bridge's supportin
April 23, 2019 Read time: 2 mins

Latvia’s interior affairs minister Sandis Ģirģens has ordered the closure of Deglava Bridge from today, 25 April, declaring is a safety risk.

“I believe there are enough factors to conclude this bridge puts people’s lives at risk,” said Ģirģens, as reported by national media.

If the city doesn’t close the bridge today, Ģirģens said the national State Police will.

Latvia's State Construction Control Bureau last week ordered the closure of the bridge after inspectors found that the bridge's supporting structures were damaged. The reconstruction project does not include works to repair the damages in full, according to the media.

The bureau has been putting pressure on the city council to explain why the bridge had not previously been closed due to what they said were safety issues.

The city, however, has reduce the vehicle weight limit to 30 tonnes on the four-lane overpass.

Related Content

  • Canada: dump truck slams into bridge, partially demolishing it
    February 12, 2015
    In Canada, the driver of a dump truck that slammed into a pedestrian bridge, partially collapsing it on to road below, may have to pay for his mistake. Highway 132 in a suburb of Montreal was closed overnight while a demolition crew hastily tore down the remaining section of walkway over the road. Police are questioning the driver of the snow-removal dump truck who reportedly was travelling down the highway with his dumper raised, hitting the bridge which was built in 1979 and had recently undergone a US$
  • Road repairs take to the air
    November 29, 2018
    Automated road repairs using 3D printing could save money and reduce disruption, reports Kristina Smith It’s the middle of the night and in the street below a team is busy carrying out repairs to the road surface. But there isn’t a human in sight. A road-repair drone has landed at the site of a crack and a 3D asphalt printer is now busy filling in that crack. A group of traffic cone drones have positioned themselves around the repair location to protect the repair drone and divert traffic around it.
  • Safety on Asia’s Highways: Brimming with Innovation reports IRF Washington office
    June 11, 2019
    While efforts to improve road safety on the Asian continent are finally starting to pay off, the challenge to reduce fatalities remains immense. According to the Asian Development Bank, 60% of the annual 1.2 million fatal traffic injuries take place on Asia’s road network. Many of the contributing factors to this epidemic such as deficient infrastructure, outdated standards, and poor enforcement can be addressed with proper political leadership, well trained agency staff, and knowledge resources. However,
  • EastLink tollway a winner at the 9th ITS Australia National Awards
    June 4, 2019
    The Freeway Tunnel Ventilation On-Demand System for Melbourne’s EastLink project picked up the top Industry Award category at the recent 9th ITS Australia National Awards Traditional tunnel ventilation systems are inefficient. Fans operate at fixed speed in manual mode or with individual fans programmed to switch on and off at preset times to ensure zero portal emissions with all emissions dispersed via ventilation stacks. EastLink’s new ventilation on demand – VoD - system matches variable speed fan