Dom Luís I Bridge
| Dom Luís I Bridge | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Coordinates | 41°08′24″N 8°36′34″W / 41.139863°N 8.609336°WCoordinates: 41°08′24″N 8°36′34″W / 41.139863°N 8.609336°W |
| Carries |
Light rail line and pedestrians (upper deck) General traffic and pedestrians (lower deck) |
| Crosses | Douro River |
| Locale | Porto, between the City of Porto proper and Vila Nova de Gaia |
| Official name | Ponte Luís I |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Two-hinged double-deck arch bridge |
| Total length | 385.25 metres (1,263.9 ft) |
| Height | 44.6 metres (146 ft) |
| Longest span | 172 metres (564 ft) |
| History | |
| Construction cost | 369,000 escudos[1] |
| Opened | 1886 |
The Dom Luís I (or Luiz I) Bridge (Portuguese: Ponte Luís I or Luiz I) is a double-decked metal arch bridge that spans the Douro River between the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia in Portugal. At the time of construction its span of 172 m was the longest of its type in the world.
The government held a competition for the construction of a metallic bridge over the Douro River on a site that was adjacent to an existing bridge that it would replace. Téophile Seyrig had engineered the D. Maria Pia Bridge project nearby, whilst working as a partner of Gustave Eiffel. He now took sole responsibility for the new, major Luís I Bridge. The construction was begun in 1881 and the bridge opened on 31 October 1886 (the upper deck; the lower deck opened in 1887).[2]
- Total length 385.25 m
- Weight 3045 tons
- The arch measures 172 m in length and 44.6 m in height
Originally and for more than a century, the bridge carried road traffic on both decks. Along with other vehicles, electric trams crossed the upper deck from 1908[2] until May 1959, and trolleybuses crossed both decks from May 1959 until 1993.[3] In 2003, the top deck was closed to private motor traffic and since that time the top deck has been occupied by Line D of the Metro do Porto light rail system (which opened in 2005) and a pedestrian walkway, offering great views on the historic center of Porto, the Port wine caves of Vila Nova de Gaia and the river Douro.[2]
In 1982, the bridge was designated a cultural heritage "Property of Public Interest" (Imóvel de Interesse Público) by IGESPAR, the Institute for the Management of Architectural and Archaeological Heritage, a federal agency.[4]
The bridge often is confused with the nearby Maria Pia Bridge, a railway bridge built nine years earlier and located a kilometre to the east. However, although they bear a strong resemblance to one another, the earlier bridge has only one deck.
References
- ↑ Manuel de Azeredo (December 1999), The Bridges of Porto - Technical Data, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, retrieved 12 August 2014
- 1 2 3 Costa, Patrícia (2005). "Ponte de D. Luís (IPA no. 00005548)". SIPA – Sistema de Informação para o Património Arquitectónico (Information System for Architectural Heritage) (in Portuguese). pt:Instituto da Habitação e da Reabilitação Urbana. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
- ↑ King, B. R.; Price, J. R. (1995). The Tramways of Portugal (4th ed.). London: Light Rail Transit Association. pp. 42, 44, 47. ISBN 0-948106-19-0.
- ↑ "Ponte de D. Luís" (in Portuguese). IGESPAR. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
External links
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