Engineering and construction feat - Video of the transversal shift of the 40000 tonne viaduct

The special procedure involved moving the bridge by 20.59 metres while traffic continued to flow on the adjacent viaduct. The A45 reconstruction works have been carried out since 2017 by a consortium of contractors led by STRABAG and contracted by Autobahn GmbH. The motorway connects Dortmund and Aschaffenburg, has a length of 257 kilometres and nearly 60 bridges.
At Rinsdorf/Rälsbach, the spectacular demolition of the old bridge was completed in February 2022, which also broke a record. Never before in Germany had such a high bridge been demolished: the Rinsdorf viaduct is 70 metres high and 485 metres long.

Traffic restrictions reduced to a minimum

The parallel bridge construction technology allowed the construction of the new structure to start at the same time as the demolition of the original bridge - minimising traffic restrictions.
The current lateral shift will go down in German infrastructure history as an engineering feat. Not only is it technically unique, but it is also proof that large-scale construction can be carried out while maintaining traffic and causing as little disruption as possible.

The bridge, twice as heavy as the Dreamboat, was pushed for nearly 21 metres

An important milestone in the project was reached on 3-4 June, when the Rinsdorf viaduct, which weighs twice as much - 40,000 tonnes - as the famous dream ship MS Deutschland, was placed next to another bridge carrying traffic on the A45 motorway. Specialists moved the bridge's steel and concrete colossus and 70-metre-high piers 20.59 metres transversely.

On a slippery slope towards the final location of the bridge

In preparation for the transverse shift, four of the six bridge piers were raised. The Teflon plates, acting as sliding pads, were placed between the slipway and the foundations. The plates were coated with a special lubricant to allow the bridge to move as if it were on rails, thus minimising frictional resistance. Twenty-four hydraulic jacks were used to lift the structure into place in 15 sections. During the transversal push, the bridge column was moved 1.40 m closer to its mate at intervals. A video was also made of the feat.

The technological solution opens up new horizons

The operation took 20 hours and was broadcast live on the internet. Autobahn GmbH's technical director Dirk Brandenburger described the system used to move the massive bridge as ingenious. The project is expected to be completed by the end of the year. This particular phase of the bridge construction is a milestone of not only local, but national importance in the series of modern German engineering achievements.