Maintenance work on motorways with lane reductions is no longer possible during the day because of the heavy traffic. And the time windows for night work are also becoming shorter and shorter. Innovative solutions are therefore in demand.
The Swiss Federal Roads Office (ASTRA) decided to develop and build the ASTRA Bridge. This mobile bridge is used to allow resurfacing of the motorway without obstructing traffic or creating a traffic jam.
Driving above, building below
The nearly 240-metre-long ASTRA Bridge will be built above the roadway to be resurfaced. The traffic will be diverted above it in two lanes and can drive on it at 60 km/h. Around 100 metres are available under the bridge for the actual construction work. Once the work under the bridge is finished, the mobile bridge is moved a further 100 metres by remote control for the next construction section.
The bridge itself consists of an drive-on ramp, 18 portals, 19 intermediate sections and departure ramp. For this imposing structure, Cometto will supply 22 power packs, 22 valve packs, 2 control cabins, 72 MSPE bogies for the gantries, 8 SPMT bogies for the ramps, 16 ModulMAX SP-E bogies for the ramps and the satellite navigation system for the complete bridge.
Pilot project on the A1 section between Recherswil and Luterbach
The individual sections for the ASTRA Bridge are currently being manufactured. The first completed sections arrived on 26 July 2021. When all parts will be ready in late autumn, the complete assembly will follow so that the ASTRA Bridge can be tested as a whole.
It will then go into use in spring 2022, when surface replacement is planned as a pilot project on the A1 section between Recherswil and Luterbach.