Levensau High Bridge

54.36777777777810.075833333333Koordinaten: 54 ° 22 '4 " N, 10 ° 4' 33" E

With Levensau bridge the high bridges are called spanning the Kiel Canal between the district Suchsdorf of Schleswig-Holstein Kiel on the south side and the village Levensau the community Neuwittenbek on the north side of the channel.

Name

The bridge has its name from a small collection of about ten houses, which is located northwest of the bridge. This in turn takes its name from the river Levensau, which was until 1784 here along flowed and then expanded the Eider Canal. The Eider channel in turn was expanded in 1893 to Kaiser- Wilhelm-Kanal.

First bridge of 1893

The road and railway bridge was built in 1893/1894 about the time at this point not yet completed channel to carry the railway route Kiel -Flensburg and Kiel Chaussee -Eckernförde over the channel. She has worked with about 163 meters, the longest span of the original canal bridges, the clear height above the channel is in the middle of the bridge about 42 meters. Kaiser Wilhelm II praised the building as the most beautiful bridge over the built under him Kaiser Wilhelm Canal. Originally formed four towers on the abutments two goals, the architectural design of these massive buildings designed by the architect and Prussian Baubeamte Hermann Muthesius. On the bridge itself there was thus room for a tavern and even for a small station, stopped trains on the up in the 1960s.

The towers were removed during separation of roadway and railroad track in 1954. From the original bridge, the iron truss arches and the bridgeheads have been preserved.

In the two abutments of the old bridge every year several thousand bats hibernate. The largest group is doing the Noctule. For this type the Levensau bridge is the largest currently known wintering grounds in Central Europe.

The bridge is to be built back in 2014 and a new bridge using the Südpfeilers the old bridge will be built on the existing route.

Second bridge from 1984

For vehicle traffic, a new four-lane bridge was opened in 1984 in addition. It is located east of the old bridge and broke it off as part of the B 76. It has two lanes in each direction and a hard shoulder. The rate of speed is limited to 100 km / hr. In 2010, the entire road surface and railings and guardrails was renewed in several months of construction.

New bridge, planned from 2012

Because of the advanced age of the replaced old Levensau first bridge, a new building between two existing bridges was considered. The cost of this was estimated at 47 million euros. The reasons for the new building are manifold: A new bridge is more economical than upgrading the old bridge for another twenty years. The required clearance height of 42 meters above the water level is reached only in the middle of the old bridge, which is why it defines the narrowest point in the North Sea-Baltic Canal at the time. As part of the new building bridge the habitat of the above bat population to be maintained. Since the foundation work and embankments would result for the new building between the existing bridges reduction problems, was also a new building on the existing bridge alignment in conversation.

After decision by the Federal Ministry of Transport is to be built now on the route of the old bridge using the ertüchtigenden to southern abutment a new bridge structure.

Pictures

Levensau Bridge ( 1900)

Levensau Bridge ( 1910) with SMS Dresden

Levensau Bridge (2005 )

Levensau Bridge (2008 )

Levensau Bridge ( 2012)