VIDEO: Pelješac bridge connected as final segment installed

by croatiaweek
July 28, 2021
in News

Pelješac bridge now connected as final segment installed

(Croatian Roads/YouTube)

PELJEŠAC, 28 July 2021 – The final segment of the 2.4 kilometre-long Pelješac Bridge, which connects the southernmost parts of Croatia and the country’s mainland, has been installed on Wednesday night, three months ahead of schedule.

The 165th and final segment of the bridge span was installed tonight at 11 p.m., three years after Chinese construction workers started work in the Bay of Mali Ston.

A ceremony, which featured Croatian klapa singers and a fireworks display, was held tonight to mark the historic occasion (footage below).

“Preparation was an important part. This is the second attempt to build a bridge. The hardest part of the job was laying steel piles at the bottom of the bay that ended two years ago,” said project manager Goran Legac from Croatian Roads, before adding.

“The speed limit on the bridge will be 90 km per hour, and in addition to double traffic lines in each direction, there will be stop lines.”

(Croatian Roads/YouTube)

Additional work such as welding of all raised segments, waterproofing, pavementing, fencing and AKZ protection will now be carried out on the bridge.

Whilst the bridge is now connected, there is still work to do before it opens to the public. Namely, around 30 kilometres of access roads to the bridge need to be finished off. Works on the access roads are expected to be completed before next year’s tourist season begins.

(Croatian Roads/YouTube)

“The bridge will be completed before June next year. We are thinking of a technical inspection during February next year, and the access roads will be ready by June,” Legac revealed.

The Pelješac Bridge, worth €550 million, of which 357 million is provided by the EU, is being built by the China Road and Bridge Corporation.