With the pouring of the last two of 42 bridge pier pairs, the governments of Australia and Tasmania have announced the completion of substructure work on the New Bridgewater Bridge.
One of the final piles reaches 88m below the surface and is believed to be the largest ever poured in Australia. The piers are between eight and 16m in height, to allow navigation clearance.
The piers will support 1,082 concrete segments, which are cast on site in Bridgewater.
The US$516.5 million bridge is 1.2km in length and will carry two lanes of traffic across the river Derwent in the south of Tasmania. It fixes a missing link between two highways to give a more reliable journey time to the 22,000 people who cross the bridge daily (link opens in new tab).
The old bridge carried a railway line that closed in 2014. The new bridge has no provision for a railway. However, the design requirements specified that the new bridge should not obstruct the rail corridor to allow for a possible future reintroduction with a modern lifting bridge.
The new Bridgewater Bridge will be finished in 2025. The contractor is McConnell Dowell, with partners Jacobs; Tony Gee and Partners; Tonkin and Taylor; Wood Marsh; and Pitt & Sherry and bridge specialist VSL.
