Home Discussion Topics Dictionary Almanac

Signup Login

List of Aar bridges in Berne

Overview

This is a list of the 18 bridge

Bridge

A bridge is a structure built to span a valley, road, body of water, or other physical obstacle, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle. Designs of bridges vary depending on the function of the bridge and the nature of the terrain where the bridge is constructed.-History:The first...

s spanning the river Aar

Aar

The Aar , a tributary of the Rhine, is the longest river that both rises and ends entirely within Switzerland.Its total length from its source to its junction with the Rhine comprises about 295 km , during which distance it descends , draining an area of .-Course:The Aar rises in the great Aar...

on the territory of the city of Bern, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland , officially the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 states named cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities...

Discussion

Ask a question about 'List of Aar bridges in Berne'

Start a new discussion about 'List of Aar bridges in Berne'

Answer questions from other users

Full Discussion Forum

Encyclopedia

This is a list of the 18 bridge

Bridge

s spanning the river Aar

Aar

on the territory of the city of Bern, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland , officially the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 states named cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities...

.

With the historical city core situated on a steeply-flanked peninsula formed by the river, the Aar is a defining part of Bern's cityscape and features prominently in the city's 800-year history. Given its topography, the city's development in modern times was dependent on the construction of long high level bridges. Their construction in the 19th and 20th century at times stretched the limits of the possible.

The building of the great bridges was a continuous topic of political controversy in Bern up until World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The disputes about the location and even the construction materials of the bridges – stone or iron – reflected the rivalry between the city's conservative and liberal factions.

Current bridges

In the table, "length" refers to the distance between abutment

Abutment

An abutment is, generally, the point where two structures or objects meet.Specifically, an abutment may be:* the part of a structure that supports an arch.* the tooth or teeth that support a fixed or removable bridge....

s. The height is measured from the pavement to the mean water level.

Name and description	Opened
Untertorbrücke Untertorbrücke The Untertorbrücke is a stone arch bridge that spans the river Aar at the easternmost point of the Enge peninsula in the city of Berne, Switzerland, connecting the Mattequartier in the Old City to the Schosshalde neighbourhood... : Built in wood 1256, rebuilt in stone 1489. The city's only Aar bridge up until 1834.	1256 / 1489	6
Neubrügg ("new bridge"): First built in 1466 to replace a ferry, rebuilt in 1535. Covered bridge Covered bridge A covered bridge is a bridge, often single-lane, with enclosed sides and a roof. They have typically been wooden, although some newer ones are concrete or metal with glass sides... on sandstone Sandstone Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains. Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any color, but the most common colors are tan, brown, yellow,... pillars, oldest wooden bridge in the Canton.	1466 / 1535	17
Altenbergsteg: Footbridge built to connect the city to the Altenberg residential area. Built in wood in 1834 to replace an 1823 ferry, rebuilt in iron 1857.	1834 / 1857	7
Nydeggbrücke Nydeggbrücke The Nydeggbrücke is a bridge in Berne, Switzerland which connects the eastern part of the old city to the new part. It crosses over the Aare River and is located very close to the Bärengraben. It was built in parallel to the Untertorbrücke in 1840, which until then had been the only bridge crossing... : First high level bridge, sheathed in sandstone Sandstone Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains. Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any color, but the most common colors are tan, brown, yellow,... . Its main arch is the widest stone arch in continental Europe. Built by a consortium of conservative burghers and financed through usage fees.	1840	5
Tiefenaubrücke: High level stone bridge built by the liberal government in reaction to the Nydeggbrücke. Original design marred by 1977 broadening. Parallel railway bridge opened 1965.	1850	14
Dalmazibrücke: Riverbank-level bridge in the Marzili neighbourhood, originally built as an iron bridge in 1872; demolished and rebuilt in prestressed concrete in 1958.	1872 / 1958	3
Kirchenfeldbrücke: First iron high level bridge, inspired by contemporary English England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... designs. Built to develop the Kirchenfeld neighbourhood.	1883	4
Kornhausbrücke: High level bridge of stone and iron intended to develop the Lorraine Lorraine (région) Lorraine is one of the 26 régions of France. It is the only administrative region with two cities of equal importance, Metz and Nancy. Metz is considered to be the official capital since that is where the regional parliament is situated... neighbourhood.	1898	8
Schönausteg: Iron footbridge in the style of the Altenbergsteg, near the Dählhölzli zoo.	1906	1
Halenbrücke: High level concrete bridge, only lightly reinforced, leading to Kirchlindach Kirchlindach Kirchlindach is a municipality in the district of Bern in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.-History:The name Kirchlindach first appeared in writing on 2 October 1185, when Pope Lucius III affirmed legal possession of the area to Erlach in a papal bull... .	1913	18
Seftausteg: Iron footbridge at the Felsenau power plant Felsenau power plant The Felsenau power plant is a hydroelectric power plant located on the river Aar in Berne, Switzerland. It was built in 1909 by the city's utility company, Energie Wasser Bern. After a 1989 modernisation, the turbine hall is now used as a museum... .	1921	16
Felsenaubrücke: First built by the army as a wooden bridge in 1929, rebuilt as a solid-web girder bridge made of packed concrete in 1949. Not to be confused with the later Felsenauviadukt.	1928 / 1949	15
Lorrainebrücke: First reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete is concrete in which steel reinforcement bars , plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen a material that would otherwise be brittle.-History:... high level bridge, built in the then-popular Heimatstil to resemble the older stone bridges.	1930	9
Railway viaduct: Built in concrete by the Federal Railways SBB-CFF-FFS Swiss Federal Railways is the national railway company of Switzerland headquartered in Berne... to replace the aging Rote Brücke. It was the longest four-track railway viaduct Viaduct A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early... in Europe at the time of construction.	1941	10
Monbijoubrücke: Designed as a high-traffic four-lane automobile bridge at a peak of general automobile enthusiasm; executed in prestressed concrete Prestressed concrete Prestressed concrete is a method for overcoming the concrete's natural weakness in tension. It can be used to produce beams, floors or bridges with a longer span than is practical with ordinary reinforced concrete... .	1962	2
Tiefenaubrücke (RBS): High level bridge in prestressed concrete built alongside the Tiefenaubrücke for the RBS Regionalverkehr Bern-Solothurn Regionalverkehr Bern-Solothurn RBS is a Swiss public transport company. It operates train, tram, and bus lines between Berne, Solothurn and Worb.RBS was founded as the Bern-Worb-Bahn in 1898, which grew to RBS in 1984 through a series of mergers... railway.	1965	13
Felsenauviadukt: Longest viaduct of the A1 highway A1 (Switzerland) The A1 is a motorway in Switzerland. It follows Switzerland's main east-west axis, from St. Margrethen in northeastern Switzerland's canton of St. Gallen through to Geneva in southwestern Switzerland... and the world's first single-cell box girder bridge Box girder bridge A box girder bridge is a bridge in which the main beams comprise girders in the shape of a hollow box. The box girder normally comprises either prestressed concrete, structural steel, or a composite of steel and reinforced concrete. The box is typically rectangular or trapezoidal in cross-section... built with the cantilever method, a pioneer work in prestressed concrete construction. Design by Christian Menn Christian Menn Christian Menn is a bridge designer from Meiringen, Switzerland. He owned his own Engineering Company in Chur, Switzerland from 1957-1971. From 1971 until his retirement in 1992 he became a professor of Structural Engineering at ETH Zurich specializing in Bridge design... .	1975	12
Stauwehr Engehalde: Steel walkway across the Engehalde weir Weir A weir , also known as a lowhead dam, is a small overflow-type dam commonly used to raise the level of a river or stream. Weirs have traditionally been used to create mill ponds in such places. Water flows over the top of a weir, although some weirs have sluice gates which release water at a level... .	1998	11

Former bridges

Apart from the bridges that were rebuilt in the same spot, as noted above, one bridge no longer exists:

	\|Name and description	\| In operation	\| Length	\| Height	\| Span	\| Location
	Rote Brücke (Red Bridge): High level bridge on stone pillars; the first railway bridge, iron bridge and double-decker bridge in Bern. Generally referred to by its red colour, it also acquired the sobriquet Sobriquet A sobriquet is a nickname or a fancy name, sometimes assumed, but often given by another. It is usually a familiar name, distinct from a pseudonym assumed as a disguise, but a nickname which is familiar enough such that it can be used in place of a real name without the need of explanation... Würgengel ("Angel of Death") because of frequent fatal accidents. Replaced by the Lorrainebrücke and the modern railway bridge.	1858–1941

Ferries

Before the building of the major bridges, a number of ferries

Ferry

A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...

existed in Bern to carry passengers and cargo across the Aar. Two remain in service:

The Reichenbach ferry is a cable ferry
Cable ferry
A cable ferry is guided and in many cases propelled across a river or other larger body of water by cables connected to both shores. They are also called chain ferries, floating bridges, or punts....

established in 1743. It links the tip of the Enge peninsula to Reichenbach Castle in Zollikofen
Zollikofen
Zollikofen is a municipality in the district of Bern in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.It is a suburb of the capital of Bern.It is home to the Swiss College of Agriculture and the Bern Switzerland Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.-Geography:Zollikofen has an area of...

.
The Zehndermätteli ferry is a cable ferry linking the Enge peninsula to Bremgarten
Bremgarten
The name Bremgarten may refer to several places:*In Germany**Bremgarten is a little village, near Freiburg im Breisgau , Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg*In Switzerland**Bremgarten bei Bern, in the Canton of Bern...

.