Skip to main content

Sweden’s Tjörnbron Bridge to get replacement cables

SwedenSwedish contractor Svevia has been commissioned by the Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket) to handle cable replacements on the Tjörnbron Bridge. Replacement is expected to start in 2019 for completion by 2025. Svevia project manager Johan Söderberg said the work will be complicated, not least because traffic must continue to us the bridge. He reportedly said that much of the work will have to take place at night, in the summer and in good weather. The 664m-long cable stayed Tjörn Bridge,
May 30, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
Cable that: the Tjörnbron Bridge, Sweden: (photo: Arild Vågen)

Swedish contractor 6535 Svevia has been commissioned by the Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket) to handle cable replacements on the Tjörnbron Bridge.

Replacement is expected to start in 2019 for completion by 2025. Svevia project manager Johan Söderberg said the work will be complicated, not least because traffic must continue to us the bridge. He reportedly said that much of the work will have to take place at night, in the summer and in good weather.

The 664m-long cable stayed Tjörn Bridge, together with two smaller bridges, connects Stenungsund on mainland Sweden with the island Tjörn. Span width is 366m and height above the water is 45m.

The Tjörn Bridge was opened in 1981 after its predecessor, the Almö Bridge, built in 1960, collapsed after the cargo ship Star Clipper collided with its span in January 1980 in fog and darkness. Eight people died in seven vehicles that plunged into the sea.

In a book analysing bridge failures, author Bjorn Akesson, a Swedish consulting engineer, noted that many factors contributed to the ship being in the wrong trajectory as it swept under the old bridge. The bridge’s design, he suggested, did not allow sufficient clear passage for a large vessel, creating a high risk of an accident occurring.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Province halts planned Vancouver bridge to replace Massey Tunnel
    September 14, 2017
    Canada’s province of British Columbia has stopped procurement for a proposed 10-lane US$2.8 billion bridge to replace the ageing George Massey Tunnel near Vancouver. Local media said the province would pay $1.65 million to two of the three shortlisted consortia which had already submitted bids for what is officially called the George Massey Tunnel Replacement project.
  • New designer for Houston Channel Bridge
    September 8, 2020
    Harris County in the US state of Texas recently fired FIGG from the $1 billion project.
  • US$73 million Francis Scott Bridge replacement contract
    September 3, 2024
    Kiewit has been awarded a US$73 million Francis Scott Bridge replacement contract.
  • Work begins on Stockholm’s new bypass
    August 22, 2016
    The first tunnels are being excavated for the huge bypass tunnel in Sweden’s capital Stockholm – Adrian Greeman writes. After years of preparation and design, blasting and rock moving for Sweden's largest infrastructure project began south of the city this year. It sets in train a decade-long project that will create a new half-ring dual three-lane motorway for the city, 20km long. With most of it deep underground, it will also be one of Europe's largest ever road tunnels. The scheme is aimed at transformin