In Vitebsk, traffic was solemnly launched on the new bridge
The initial plans envisioned the construction work taking almost five years. However, specialists, working at night and during an unusually warm winter, completed it in 20 months. The interchange is essential for the residents of this part of Vitebsk. Trams, trolleybuses, buses, and minibuses will travel across the bridge to various city districts.
Before the traffic was opened, those involved in the overpass reconstruction were awarded. The Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, Nikolai Sherstnev, thanked the services and organizations for the construction and improvement of the interchange. "Today is a significant day, we are opening such an important facility. Not only skeptics but also professionals in this field cannot believe how quickly the bridge was reconstructed," the governor noted.
Nikolai Sherstnev spoke about future plans for the development of road infrastructure. According to him, within a year, by the next "Slavianski Bazaar" festival, they intend to put Gagarin Street in Vitebsk in order. Then, they plan to complete the construction of the ring road around the regional center.
After honoring the specialists, the construction equipment that had been working on the site and preparing it for commissioning left the overpass. At the end of the ceremony, those who wished were able to be among the first to travel on public transport across the bridge.
The "Polotsk" overpass was built in the late 19th century and is one of Vitebsk's most important transport arteries. It is located at the confluence of Kosmonavtov, Titov, and Leningradskaya streets and not only connects different districts of the city but also serves as a continuation of republican roads leading to Polotsk and further to Russia and Latvia.
The overpass was last reconstructed in 1958. Over time, its structures began to deteriorate, and construction and installation work began here in June 2011. Due to a lack of funding, it had to be suspended in 2015. Three years later, the bridge was inspected again and found to be in an emergency condition. In November 2018, traffic and pedestrian movement across the overpass ceased. Considering the inconvenience caused by the closure of traffic (4 tram and 15 bus routes passed through here, with 110 minibuses running daily), work on the facility was organized in two shifts, involving 400 builders and over 70 units of equipment.
The construction work cost Br89 million, including credit resources. The updated overpass is a bridge structure 45 m wide, 7.6 m high, and 412 m long. Tram tracks were laid here using a non-standard method - with the use of a trackless structure by the technology of gluing rails into metal boxes in prefabricated monolithic sections of the reinforced concrete structure of the tram track. At the same time, the rails are laid on rubber pads in thermally continuous welded rails, which reduces the number of joints and lowers the noise and vibration from the train's movement.
