Varodd Bridge
{{short description|Road bridges in Adger county, Norway}}
{{Infobox bridge
|fetchwikidata = coordinates
|name = Old Varodd Bridge
|native_name = Gamle Varoddbrua
|native_name_lang = NO
|image = Varoddbrua.jpg
|caption = The new westbound Varodd Bridge with the Old Varodd Bridge still in place in 2015.
|design = Former suspension bridge{{Structurae|id=20008131|name=Old Varodd Bridge}}
|length = {{convert|618|m|ft}}{{cite web|title=Old Varodd Bridge|url=http://bridge-info.org/bridge/index.php?ID=31|publisher=Bridge-Info.org|access-date=9 July 2013}}
|mainspan = {{convert|337|m|ft}}
|spans = 8
|replaced_by = The eastbound cantilever bridge (2020)
}}
The Varodd Bridges are two parallel cantilever bridges in Kristiansand municipality, in Agder county, Norway, and they cross the Topdalsfjorden. They are named after the peninsula on the western shore. It goes from Vige and ends in Søm in Kristiansand. The bridges carry the European route E18 highway over the fjord.{{cite book|url=http://www.lotsberg.net/data/norway/bru.html|chapter=Road Viaducts & Bridges in Norway (> 500 m) |editor-last=Merzagora|editor-first=Eugenio A.|title=Norske bruer og viadukter|access-date=2017-02-01}}
Old Bridge
The Old Varodd Bridge was a former suspension bridge, which opened in 1956. It was a {{convert|618|m}} long suspension bridge, with a main span of {{convert|337|m}}. The two towers reached {{Convert|70|m}} above sea level. Before the completion of the second bridge, this was the only bridge crossing Topdalsfjorden, making it a two-lane bridge carrying traffic in both directions. The replacement bridge was built in between the two current bridges and construction began in early 2017. The suspension bridge was demolished and removed in the fall of 2020.{{cite web|url=http://www.vegvesen.no/Europaveg/varoddbrua/OmProsjektet|title=Varoddbrua-Om Prosjektet|language=no|publisher=Statens vegvesen|access-date=2017-02-01}}
New bridges
{{Infobox bridge
|name = New Varodd Bridge
|native_name = Nye Varoddbrua
|native_name_lang = NO
|image =
|design = Cantilever bridge{{Structurae|id=20008130|name=New Varodd Bridge}}
|length = {{convert|660|m|ft}}
|mainspan = {{convert|260|m|ft}}
|spans = 4
|below = {{convert|32|m|ft}}
}}
The New Varodd Bridge is parallel to the older bridge, and was completed in 1993 at a cost of US$13 million.{{citation | url = http://enr.construction.com/engineering/pdf/sourcebook/global/2003-Top_Global_Sourcebook.pdf | title = Construction Facts - The Sourcebook of Statistics, Records and Resources | magazine = Engineering News Record | publisher = McGraw Hill | volume = 251, Number 20a | date = November 2003 | access-date = 9 August 2014 }} It is a cantilever bridge with four spans. The main span is {{Convert|260|m}} and a total length of {{convert|663|m}}. The bridge has a {{convert|32|m|adj=on}} clearance below it. The bridge was built solely to relieve the traffic on the older bridge, and the two lanes only handled westbound traffic.
Another new cantilever bridge for eastbound traffic was constructed between the old and new Varodd Bridge. It was completed in 2020.[https://www.nrk.no/sorlandet/slik-blir-den-nye-varoddbrua-1.13177080nrk.no Ny Varoddbru skal stå klar i 2020] NRK{{in lang|no}}
Gallery
Varoddbrua nov 2020.jpg|The two parallel cantilever bridges in 2020. The former suspension bridge has been removed.
Kristiansand, Varoddbroene fra Torsvikveien 04-03.JPG|The old suspension bridge on left, the 1993 bridge on right.
Varoddbrua (1962).jpg|The old Varodd Bridge in 1962.
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Bridges in Norway}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Geography of Kristiansand
Category:Suspension bridges in Norway