Nibelungen Bridge (Regensburg)
Encyclopedia
The Nibelungen Bridge is a dual road bridge with two sections spanning both arms of the Danube
at kilometre mark 2378.39 in Regensburg
, Germany
. The current bridge, the third on the site, was erected in 2001–04 to replace a bridge erected in 1950 which was no longer adequate for traffic demands, and which had replaced a bridge built in 1938 and destroyed in World War II
. Carrying an average of 42,000 vehicles a day, it is one of the most important bridges in the Regensburg area.
and B15. With the Pfaffenstein Bridge and the Schwabelweis Bridge, it is one of only three Danube bridges without load restrictions. The bridge is also important in plans for tram service in Regensburg, as part of the "service axis". As another traffic improvement measure, before the bridge was rebuilt, the streets leading to it at each end were widened. Continuation of this street widening and construction of another bridge over the River Regen are planned, but are unlikely to occur soon.
was built between the Lower Wöhrd and the neighbourhood of Weichs, on the site of the north span of the Nibelungen Bridge. However, this alleviated the traffic problems only slightly because it could not be used by heavy vehicles.
In 1930, definite planning began for a new Danube crossing which could carry heavy traffic. Three possibilities were considered:
Firm plans for a new steel bridge were made in 1933. Architect Roderick Flick, suggested by the Bavaria
n Ministry of the Interior, was engaged to oversee architectural design and the Munich
engineering firm of Gerhard and Zenns the structural design. A traffic count on the Stone Bridge on a Saturday in early 1934 counted 40,000 pedestrians, 14,500 cyclists, 5,500 vehicles of all kinds and 278 trams. The city therefore decided to bypass the Old City on the east, to build a new bridge over the River Regen (the Frankenbrücke), and to fund both. In summer the cost of constructing both was estimated at almost RM5.05 million, which led to a dispute between the city, the state of Bavaria and the Reichswehr
, which was intensely interested in the Danube bridge. In summer 1935 it was agreed that costs would be shared between the Reich, the city, Bavaria and the Reichswehr, and preparations for construction began.
, dedicated it "to the glory of the state, the glory of the Bavarian Ostmark and the glory of National Socialist Germany". Work began with the north span, between the Lower Wöhrd and Weichs; work on the south span, between Weißenburgstraße and the Lower Wöhrd, began in summer 1936. In 1937 the north span opened to traffic and repairs immediately began on the Stone Bridge. On 18 June 1938, the south span and the Frankenbrücke both opened, and on 16 July Minister Wagner ceremonially christened the bridge. Several thousand people attended the festivities and the fireworks that evening.
The bridge was designed by Roderich Fick
, with engineering work by Gerhart & Zenns. Fick wanted the new concrete bridge to appear as slender and serene as possible to contrast with the Stone Bridge.
On 23 April 1945, the bridge was blown up to slow the Allied
advance, and largely destroyed.
of Regensburg, Hans Schaidinger, and the Bavarian Interior Minister, Günther Beckstein. The old bridge first had to be moved 8 m laterally so that traffic could continue to use it. Use of the bridge by traffic continued without further restrictions until July, when the eastbound lanes had to be closed for 4 weeks while the bridge pillars were extended 10 m and rails installed in preparation for shifting the old bridge. Busses were nonetheless able to continue to use the northern half of the bridge except on the moving day itself. Moving began on 8 August; on 30 August 2001, the entire length of the bridge reopened after the move.
Work began on the new western spans in August 2001 and was completed on 9 November 2002. Traffic was then redirected across the new half, and the old bridge was for the most part demolished or exploded. After all the rubble was cleared, construction of the eastern spans began and was completed in April 2004. After the bridge was fully open to traffic, final tasks consisted of making permanent roadway markings and constructing pedestrian and bicycle paths on the west side; during construction there had not been space for these. All construction was complete in mid-June 2004.
The cost of the bridge was increased by at least DM7.6 million by the need to acquire more steel because of a data entry error combined with underestimation.
nudes. He requested porphyry
, an extremely durable stone, for the eagle but was required to use granite. He began work over a year late; when the bridge was dedicated, the eagle was not yet ready and was ineptly added to the official photographs by retouching. When completed in 1939, the 9-metre eagle weighed 12 tonne
s and had cost RM18,000. In March 1940 it was installed at a semicircular lookout between the two parts of the bridge.
The eagle was mounted on the 1950 Nibelungen Bridge as a federal eagle, facing east, with the swastika omitted from the oak garland in its claws. It was frequently defaced with graffiti and painted various colours. The maidens were also placed on the new bridge.
On 11 July 2001, as part of the preparations for moving the 1950 bridge before its demolition, the eagle and the maidens were moved into storage. It was announced at the time that the city would find an appropriate use for the eagle, but as of 2008 it was still in storage, despite a 2003 invitation for proposals from well known artists and an exhibit of the suggestions, which included wrapping it in the manner of Christo and permitting nature to reclaim it by letting grass grow over it. Other ideas have included smashing it and reassembling it randomly, and a local entrepreneur once offered to buy it and put it in his garden.
From 1964 to 2001 the Eisstadion an der Nibelungenbrücke, former home of the Regensburg ice hockey
club, stood on the island next to the 1950 bridge; it was torn down during construction of the new bridge.
A neighbourhood parking garage for almost 70 vehicles is located behind the south abutment of the current bridge.
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
at kilometre mark 2378.39 in Regensburg
Regensburg
Regensburg is a city in Bavaria, Germany, located at the confluence of the Danube and Regen rivers, at the northernmost bend in the Danube. To the east lies the Bavarian Forest. Regensburg is the capital of the Bavarian administrative region Upper Palatinate...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The current bridge, the third on the site, was erected in 2001–04 to replace a bridge erected in 1950 which was no longer adequate for traffic demands, and which had replaced a bridge built in 1938 and destroyed in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Carrying an average of 42,000 vehicles a day, it is one of the most important bridges in the Regensburg area.
Current bridge
The 2004 Nibelungen Bridge has 6 lanes, two of them reserved exclusively for busses and taxis. It currently forms part of highways B8Bundesstraße 8
The Bundesstraße 8 is a road in southwestern Germany of great historical importance. It has existed since the 9th century, known then as Via Publica, and until recent times was a key trade route linking the towns of Duisburg, Cologne, Frankfurt, Würzburg, Nuremberg, Regensburg and Passau...
and B15. With the Pfaffenstein Bridge and the Schwabelweis Bridge, it is one of only three Danube bridges without load restrictions. The bridge is also important in plans for tram service in Regensburg, as part of the "service axis". As another traffic improvement measure, before the bridge was rebuilt, the streets leading to it at each end were widened. Continuation of this street widening and construction of another bridge over the River Regen are planned, but are unlikely to occur soon.
Construction
The bridge consists of two sections of similar design over the two arms of the Danube on either side of the Lower Wöhrd, one of the two islands within the city. The southern bridge has a total span length of 168.9 m and also crosses a port railway line. The northern bridge is 206.9 m long. Both are continuous beam construction with three longitudinal sections and a primary span width of 90 m. On the south bridge, the two edge spans are each 39.45 m wide; on the north bridge, 58.45 m. Each bridge section has dual superstructures of 15.4 m width and 3.2 m constant height with a single-cell box girder of composite construction and a diagonally braced cantilevered concrete deck.Planning
Plans to supplement the Stone Bridge, at that time the only bridge across the Danube at Regensburg, with a new bridge go back to the late 19th century. The Stone Bridge was already overloaded by increased use (both city traffic and through traffic on two Imperial highways) but for unknown reasons the city hesitated. Meanwhile, several smaller bridges were built between the south bank of the river and the two islands (Upper and Lower Wöhrd) which lie within the city, but no additional bridge spanning the entire river. In 1926 a pontoon bridgePontoon bridge
A pontoon bridge or floating bridge is a bridge that floats on water and in which barge- or boat-like pontoons support the bridge deck and its dynamic loads. While pontoon bridges are usually temporary structures, some are used for long periods of time...
was built between the Lower Wöhrd and the neighbourhood of Weichs, on the site of the north span of the Nibelungen Bridge. However, this alleviated the traffic problems only slightly because it could not be used by heavy vehicles.
In 1930, definite planning began for a new Danube crossing which could carry heavy traffic. Three possibilities were considered:
- Extending the Iron Bridge (built in 1863) over the north arm of the Danube with a second span
- Constructing a new bridge at the Upper Wöhrd, supplementing or replacing a footbridge built there in 1901
- Constructing a new double-span bridge to extend Weißenburgstraße to Weichs (what became the Nibelungen Bridge)
Firm plans for a new steel bridge were made in 1933. Architect Roderick Flick, suggested by the Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
n Ministry of the Interior, was engaged to oversee architectural design and the Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
engineering firm of Gerhard and Zenns the structural design. A traffic count on the Stone Bridge on a Saturday in early 1934 counted 40,000 pedestrians, 14,500 cyclists, 5,500 vehicles of all kinds and 278 trams. The city therefore decided to bypass the Old City on the east, to build a new bridge over the River Regen (the Frankenbrücke), and to fund both. In summer the cost of constructing both was estimated at almost RM5.05 million, which led to a dispute between the city, the state of Bavaria and the Reichswehr
Reichswehr
The Reichswehr formed the military organisation of Germany from 1919 until 1935, when it was renamed the Wehrmacht ....
, which was intensely interested in the Danube bridge. In summer 1935 it was agreed that costs would be shared between the Reich, the city, Bavaria and the Reichswehr, and preparations for construction began.
1938 bridge
The bridge was named the Adolf Hitler Bridge and at the groundbreaking on 21 December 1935, the Bavarian Minister for the Interior, Adolf WagnerAdolf Wagner
Adolf Wagner was a German soldier and high-ranking Nazi Party official born in Algrange, Alsace-Lorraine.He served in World War I as an officer in the German Army...
, dedicated it "to the glory of the state, the glory of the Bavarian Ostmark and the glory of National Socialist Germany". Work began with the north span, between the Lower Wöhrd and Weichs; work on the south span, between Weißenburgstraße and the Lower Wöhrd, began in summer 1936. In 1937 the north span opened to traffic and repairs immediately began on the Stone Bridge. On 18 June 1938, the south span and the Frankenbrücke both opened, and on 16 July Minister Wagner ceremonially christened the bridge. Several thousand people attended the festivities and the fireworks that evening.
The bridge was designed by Roderich Fick
Roderich Fick
Roderich Fick was a German architect most prominent during the Nazi regime.Fick trained under Theodor Fischer, became professor at the Munich Technical University in 1935, designed the Munich residence of Rudolf Hess in 1936, joined the NSDAP in 1937, and thereby secured Nazi projects such as...
, with engineering work by Gerhart & Zenns. Fick wanted the new concrete bridge to appear as slender and serene as possible to contrast with the Stone Bridge.
On 23 April 1945, the bridge was blown up to slow the Allied
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
advance, and largely destroyed.
1950 bridge
Immediately after the end of the war, work began on clearing rubble and establishing ferry service between Weichs and the Lower Wöhrd to carry traffic; a pontoon bridge was later put in place. In 1950 a replacement bridge, only slightly changed from Fick's design, was opened to traffic and named the Nibelungen Bridge. In 1964 the city expanded the bridge from 2 to 4 lanes by eliminating the pedestrian and bicycle lanes. In 1997 this gradually proved to be a problem, since that year the Stone Bridge was closed to private traffic and thus the Nibelungen Bridge had to accommodate almost 50,000 vehicles per day. Increasing damage to the steel structure required heavy freight to avoid the bridge. Repairs were thus not worthwhile, so planning for a new bridge began in 2001.Construction of the third bridge (2001–04)
On 3 March 2001, the foundation stone for the new Nibelungen Bridge was laid by the Lord MayorLord Mayor
The Lord Mayor is the title of the Mayor of a major city, with special recognition.-Commonwealth of Nations:* In Australia it is a political position. Australian cities with Lord Mayors: Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart, Melbourne, Newcastle, Parramatta, Perth, Sydney, and Wollongong...
of Regensburg, Hans Schaidinger, and the Bavarian Interior Minister, Günther Beckstein. The old bridge first had to be moved 8 m laterally so that traffic could continue to use it. Use of the bridge by traffic continued without further restrictions until July, when the eastbound lanes had to be closed for 4 weeks while the bridge pillars were extended 10 m and rails installed in preparation for shifting the old bridge. Busses were nonetheless able to continue to use the northern half of the bridge except on the moving day itself. Moving began on 8 August; on 30 August 2001, the entire length of the bridge reopened after the move.
Work began on the new western spans in August 2001 and was completed on 9 November 2002. Traffic was then redirected across the new half, and the old bridge was for the most part demolished or exploded. After all the rubble was cleared, construction of the eastern spans began and was completed in April 2004. After the bridge was fully open to traffic, final tasks consisted of making permanent roadway markings and constructing pedestrian and bicycle paths on the west side; during construction there had not been space for these. All construction was complete in mid-June 2004.
The cost of the bridge was increased by at least DM7.6 million by the need to acquire more steel because of a data entry error combined with underestimation.
Sculpture
For the 1938 Adolf Hitler Bridge, Munich sculptor Albert Allman was commissioned to carve a group of maidens and a monumental Nazi eagle. Allman had little experience as a monumental sculptor; he was known for art decoArt Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
nudes. He requested porphyry
Porphyry (geology)
Porphyry is a variety of igneous rock consisting of large-grained crystals, such as feldspar or quartz, dispersed in a fine-grained feldspathic matrix or groundmass. The larger crystals are called phenocrysts...
, an extremely durable stone, for the eagle but was required to use granite. He began work over a year late; when the bridge was dedicated, the eagle was not yet ready and was ineptly added to the official photographs by retouching. When completed in 1939, the 9-metre eagle weighed 12 tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s and had cost RM18,000. In March 1940 it was installed at a semicircular lookout between the two parts of the bridge.
The eagle was mounted on the 1950 Nibelungen Bridge as a federal eagle, facing east, with the swastika omitted from the oak garland in its claws. It was frequently defaced with graffiti and painted various colours. The maidens were also placed on the new bridge.
On 11 July 2001, as part of the preparations for moving the 1950 bridge before its demolition, the eagle and the maidens were moved into storage. It was announced at the time that the city would find an appropriate use for the eagle, but as of 2008 it was still in storage, despite a 2003 invitation for proposals from well known artists and an exhibit of the suggestions, which included wrapping it in the manner of Christo and permitting nature to reclaim it by letting grass grow over it. Other ideas have included smashing it and reassembling it randomly, and a local entrepreneur once offered to buy it and put it in his garden.
Associated structures
A fish market formed part of the 1950 bridge, but apparently did not exist for long.From 1964 to 2001 the Eisstadion an der Nibelungenbrücke, former home of the Regensburg ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
club, stood on the island next to the 1950 bridge; it was torn down during construction of the new bridge.
A neighbourhood parking garage for almost 70 vehicles is located behind the south abutment of the current bridge.
Further reading
- Helmut Hoehn. Die Geschichte von Adi Adler. Regensburg: Buntehunde, 2008. ISBN 9783934941472 (Allegorical satire about the bridge eagle in poetic form)