Panamanian President Laurentino Cortizo was on hand Friday, 2 August to unveil the 4.6-km-long Atlantic Bridge in Colón, which has been completed by French contractor Vinci Construction Grands Projets.
The structure, located 3km from the Gatun and Agua Clara locks, is the third bridge over the Panama Canal and spans the Atlantic’s entrance to it.
Vinci won the contract to build it in October 2012, its bid of just under $366m beating rival bids from an Odebrecht-Hyundai joint venture and another comprising Spain’s Acciona and Tradeco, of Mexico.
The bridge is made entirely of reinforced concrete to cope with the adversity of the Panamanian tropical climate on the Atlantic side, Vinci said.Â
The central span consists of 530 metres of concrete deck located 75 metres above sea level, which Vinci said was a world record for a cable-stayed bridge.
Its two towers stand at over 210 metres high.
To prevent construction blocking shipping, four form travellers, each weighing 240 tonnes, were used to build the central span.
No serious accidents occurred, said Vinci.
Vinci called on subsidiaries Rodio Swissboring Panamá for the deep foundations and Freyssinet for the installation of the stays.
Image: The Atlantic Bridge is made entirely of reinforced concrete to cope with the tropical climate (Vinci Construction Grands Projets)
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The new Atlantic Bridge over the Panama Canal outside Colon appears to be prestressed / post tensioned as opposed to simply reinforced concrete as your article states.
Correct me if I’m mistaken.