Betar

Second bridge over the Matola River, pk26+900, on the Ressano Garcia Line

• Location: Maputo, Moçambique
• Solution: Bridges, Geotechnics, Infrastructure and Transport
• Type: Railway bridges, Testing, prospection and studies, Geotechnical projects, Roadways and railways
• Client: CFM – Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique
• Scope: Structural Design, Geotechnical, Drainage
• Area: 519,12m2 deck
• Project: 2020/2021
• Construction: 2022/2023
• Photography: Francisco Romão
• Contractor: TEIXEIRA DUARTE
• Dimension: 82,40m long, 16,88m max span
• Ver no Google Maps

CFM (Employer) decide to implement an Improvement and Doubling Program at Ressano Garcia Railway, and withing this Program, it was necessary to build a second Bridge over the Matola River, at pk26+900. Due to constraints directly related with the existing Bridge, it was decided to built a new and independent Bridge, parallel to the existing one and 15m apart (at axis).

The solution adopted for the deck uses a pre-stressed concrete section. The deck has a total length of 82.40m, consisting of five spans with lengths measured between the supports of the abutments and the pillar axes of: 15.45m; 16.86m; 16.88m; 16.86m; 15.45m (reproducing the spans modelling of the existing bridge).

Piers and Abutments are both reinforced concrete, with indirect foundations by using concrete piles with 1.00m diameter. Piers have a cross section inserted into a rectangle measuring with 4.40x1.60m2, having at edges semicircles measuring 1.60m in diameter.

Within the Project it was also executed the new railway connection on a total length of 1.600m.

BETAR assumed the rule of Designer, Employer´s Technical Advisory and Site Supervisor.