Puente del Alamillo Sevilla, Calatrava Bridge, Seville Design

Alamillo Bridge Seville : Santiago Calatrava Bridge

Seville Bridge, Spain – design by Santiago Calatrava Architect Engineer

12 Apr 2011

Puente del Alamillo, Sevilla

Alamillo Bridge, Seville, Spain

Date built: 1992

Design: Santiago Calatrava

Photos by Spanish architect Gonzalo Navarro taken on 11 Apr,
exclusive to e-architect:

Puente del Alamillo Sevilla photos © Gonzalo Navarro

The Alamillo Bridge, designed by Santiago Calatrava and built for the 1992 Universal Exhibition in Seville, became one of the most emblematic works of the Andalusian capital, as well as the first cable-stayed bridge supported only in a inclined mast.

The project was initially conceived more spectacular, with another twin bridge with the mast inclined to the reverse, on the other side of the island of La Cartuja. Finally only one of the bridges was made for financial reasons.

The construction of the bridge, due to its structural peculiarities, resulted in a series of unprecedented challenges, as well as much higher costs than a common cable-stayed bridge.

It has a total length of 250 meters, with a 200 meters central platform. The mast, inclined at 58 degrees,and with an altitude of 142 meters, is made of steel filled with concrete. It hold the 26 steel cables (arranged in pairs), which support the bridge deck. The fact that the lift of the bridge is carried out by tilting the mast, without opposite wires, is what made it became unique in its days.

The board consists of a metal structure with a hexagonal central platform where the active anchor straps. On both sides of the platform stand some metal brackets supporting the concrete deck of the bridge.

The top of the inclined mast is designed to hold a viewpoint, but is not open to the public.

Puente del Alamillo Sevilla images / information from Gonzalo Navarro

Santiago Calatrava

Location: Puente del Alamillo, Sevilla, Spain, southwestern Europe