On
Tuesday 10 December 2002, the last of the 17 beams was placed
on the Elizabeth River Bridge, south of Darwin, and the pouring
of concrete on Friday 13 December 2002 completed the structure.
This is a significant achievement as construction of the bridge
was commenced in May 2002 and was not due to be completed until
mid-2003.
Construction
of this bridge presented major challenges. It is the longest
of the 6 major bridges required for the project. At 510 metres,
it is double the size of the Katherine River Railway Bridge
completed in September 2002.
The
30 metre long, 60 tonne beams were lowered into place with precision,
using a specially designed and built gantry system. The piles
are linked together with reinforced concrete headstocks. They
are then linked to the existing road bridge, using massive steel
bars to improve the strength of the bridge and reduce the cost
of construction.
Pics
by John Phillips - Videocraft - December 2002
Clicking on the image will bring up a larger versions of the image
