Crosses Ganter Valley Material reinforced concrete No. of spans 8 Height 150 m Architect Christian Menn | Locale Valais, Switzerland Longest span 174 m (571 ft) Construction started 1976 Total length 678 m | |
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Design cable-stayed bridge and prestressed cantilever girder bridge Address 3911 Ried-Brig, Switzerland Similar Sunniberg Bridge, Alps, Simplon Pass, Stockalper Palace, Salginatobel Bridge | ||
Ganter Bridge is a reinforced concrete road bridge which is the longest spanning bridge in Switzerland, located along the Simplon Pass road in the canton of Valais about 10 km (6 mi) south of Brig. It was designed by renowned Swiss civil engineer Christian Menn and completed in 1980. The overall length is 678 m (2,224 ft) with a main span of 174 m (571 ft), and a maximum tower height of 150 m (492 ft).
The bridge's form consists of an S-curve high above the Ganter River, at an elevation of about 1,450 m (4,760 ft) above sea level. Two main towers and five smaller piers support a total of eight spans with lengths of 35 m (115 ft), 50 m (164 ft), 80 m (262 ft), 127 m (417 ft), 174 m (571 ft), 127 m (417 ft), 50 m (164 ft), and 35 m (115 ft). The longest span between the two towers is straight, while the remaining spans lie along curves with a radius of 200 m (656 ft).
Its unique design, combining elements of a cable-stayed bridge and a prestressed cantilever hollow-box girder bridge, with triangular concrete walls above the roadway which contain the prestressed cable-stays, has been awarded many prizes. This hybrid type of cable-stayed and girder bridge is sometimes referred to as an extradosed bridge.