Bridge to Crimea: where is it located and how was it built?

For several years, the Crimean Bridge (or as it is often called this project “Building of the Century”) was the main character of the news - all the media were full of headlines containing this phrase. Despite the fact that most of the bridge has already been erected, a lot of work still remains, workers are constantly working on the construction site. In today's material you will learn about what the Crimean bridge represents and how the idea of ​​its construction originated.

Generally speaking, the Crimean Bridge is a transport passage through the Kerch Strait. This structure combines mainland Russia and the peninsula of Crimea. The object consists of a highway and a railway, with the first part of the bridge already fully built and in operation, and the second is going through a stage of active construction.

It should be noted that The bridge to the Crimea is not only a new, modern and functional object of architecture. In addition to practical, this building has a symbolic meaning - the entry of the Crimea peninsula into the Russian Federation. The described bridge is considered the longest, not only in Russia, but throughout Europe.

To date, the Crimean Bridge plays a huge role in the transport link between mainland Russia and the Crimea peninsula. It is he who provides all passenger and cargo transportation from one side to the other.

Initially it was meant that the bridge would be referred to as Kerch (as well as the strait through which it passes), but this question caused great excitement and resonance not only in the press, but also among ordinary citizens The name of the strategic structure was chosen by joint efforts of the inhabitants of the country by voting. As a result - the bridge is called the Crimean.

The total length of the Crimean bridge is 19 km. Moreover, the length of road and railway crossings, both of which are integral parts of one large-scale structure, are slightly different. So, the road is a little shorter and is 17 kilometers, and the longer the iron road is, its figure is 18 kilometers. The road of the Crimean bridge consists of four lanes.

The maximum speed on this route is 90 km / h. In one day about 40 thousand cars can pass over the bridge (This indicator is also often referred to as bandwidth).

As for the railway tracks, after the construction is completed, they will be a continuous two-track road, belonging to the second category. Locomotives will move along the railway of the Crimean Bridge, the mass of which can reach 7,000 tons. The permitted speed for passenger trains is 120 km / h, and for freight trains - 80 km / h.

It is also important to note that in spite of the fact that transport junctions as such are not an integral part of the bridge itself, but without them its proper functioning is impossible. So, in order to enter the transport crossing through the Kerch Strait, you need to get on a 40-kilometer road, which departs from the old route of the A-290 highway within the Krasnodar Territory.

The railway tracks of the Crimean Bridge will be part of the Bagerovo-Vyshestebliyevskaya line on the territory of Crimea. And in order to enter the railway part of the transport crossing from mainland Russia, it will be necessary to overcome the 40-kilometer double-track railway. The Crimean Bridge begins on the Taman Peninsula, passes through the island of Tuzla and its spit, crosses the fairway and the Crimean cape Ak-Burun, and then ends in the easternmost city of the peninsula - the hero-city of Kerch.

By themselves, the bridges are quite long overpasses. The length of the spans varies, which is explained by the structure of the Kerch Strait bottom and is in the range from 55 to 63 meters. The bridge also has shipping spans. These elements pass over the Kerch-Yenikalsky Canal. Their length is about 227 meters, width - 185 meters, and height - 45 meters (with a nautical navigation dimension of 35 meters).

Even at the design stage, the Crimean Bridge was conceived as a strong and stable compound that will stand for years and decades not for years and decades. For example, it is generally accepted that the bridge will not require repairs in the next 100 years. Due to the fact that the bridge has a rather large length and passes through a water body, it is fairly resistant to a variety of negative seismic processes - it is stated that the structure will withstand even powerful earthquakes, estimated at 9 points.

The idea of ​​building a transport crossing through the Kerch Strait, which would connect the Crimea peninsula with mainland Russia, is not new or innovative. This issue was discussed for a long time. So, if you turn to historical sources, you can definitely say that the proposals for the construction of such a bridge sounded long before the beginning of the October Revolution.

However, their plans were interrupted by the onset of domestic soldiers. However, in the spring of 1944, after the Crimea peninsula was completely liberated from the Nazi invaders, a project was launched to build a railway bridge across the Kerch Strait. Nevertheless, this bridge was destroyed by adverse climatic events, namely, winds that came from the Sea of ​​Azov. Over time, the building was completely dismantled and destroyed.

After this, several more attempts were made to organize land communication between the Crimea peninsula and mainland Russia. For example, a project of a two-tier bridge was created, which would consist of two railway and two automobile roads and would run from the Enikale fortress to the Chushka spit. The project was approved, even construction began, but soon it was discontinued. The construction of the bridge was replaced by the construction of the ferry.

Discussions continued on the construction of a bridge across the strait in the 1970s. However, at that time, the main difficulties were the lack of financial resources necessary for the implementation of the project. In the 1990s, specialists created 4 projects for the construction of a bridge, and a whole competition was announced. When the Ukrainian government dominated the territory of Crimea, this project was again initiated. So, Many government officials of Ukraine have expressed that such a bridge will help to establish and strengthen the friendly relations between Russia and Ukraine.

Despite the fact that the idea of ​​building the Crimean Bridge, according to historical data, existed for a long time (and even some attempts were made to implement this idea), it received its direct realization only with the arrival of the Russian authorities on the Crimea peninsula and the annexation of this territory to the Russian Federation.

So, on March 19, 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin set the task for the Ministry of Transport to build a railroad and road bridge across the Kerch Strait.Already in the summer of 2014, an estimate was made, and in the winter of 2015 a construction contractor was appointed. In April 2015, the construction of technical buildings began, and by the winter of 2016 the project had passed all the necessary examinations and received full approval.

It is obvious that the construction of such a grand structure as a transport crossing through the Kerch Strait is not an easy thing. In this connection, preparatory and design works were especially thoroughly carried out, special attention was paid to the choice of a specific route along which the bridge had to pass. So, in total there were 4 projects. Three of them implied the construction of a junction from the Chushka Spit, only one - the erection of a building along the route from the Taman Peninsula through Tuzla. As a result, the fourth option was recognized as the best. Generally speaking, when choosing a route, a huge number of various factors were taken into account, including the following:

• the length of the bridge;
• the need for railway and road access to it (both on the territory of the Crimea and on the territory of mainland Russia);
• construction cost;
• port development "Caucasus";
• shipping operation;
• environmental performance;
• social and political environment;
• climatic features of the territory and others.

Thus, on the basis of careful selection, the route through the island of Tuzla was chosen as the most appropriate. The main advantages of this option were the following:

• the presence of the necessary territories in which it is possible to place auxiliary and service facilities;
• no need for construction in dangerous tectonic areas;
• lower operating costs;
• the possibility of preserving intact historical and cultural monuments;
• bypassing the mud volcano activity zone.

In this way, the bridge that leads from mainland Russia straight to Kerch is on this route. Apart from the fact that between the specialists there were heated debates regarding the route, for quite a long time the question of what exactly should be built and in what form was discussed. For example, the idea was expressed that it was necessary to build not a bridge, but a tunnel. First of all, this position was supported by the authorities of the Republic of Crimea.

After the decision to build the bridge was finally made, disputes arose as to how the object would look. There were several options. Thus, at the initial stages, construction of several bridges was simultaneously considered, one of which was to provide traffic, and the other - railway.

It was assumed that they will pass between the Taman Peninsula, Tuzlinsky Spit, the island of Tuzla and the city of Kerch. And their pillars should have been located not on the bottom of the Kerch Strait, but on land. This option did not find its embodiment, as a transport crossing on an embankment was not the best idea. The thing is that The Tuzla Spit is not a fairly stable formation and is constantly undergoing various dynamic processes.

In the summer of 2014, a preliminary estimate of the project was drawn up, which provided for the necessary financial costs for the construction of a transport passage through the Kerch Strait.In the winter of the following year, a design and construction contractor was appointed, namely, Stroygazmontazh. This organization ordered the compilation of project documentation from an organization called Giprostroymost - St. Petersburg.

The first technical and auxiliary facilities began to be built in the spring of 2015. Nevertheless, the project still had to go through all the necessary examinations and checks, which happened in February 2016. In the same period, a final estimate was made of the cost of building a transport junction that connected the Crimea and mainland Russia.

In this way, direct construction of the bridge began in February 2016. The initial stage of work was the immersion of piles, which later became the bases of the supports of the whole structure. In April of the same year, the first pillars of the currently existing Crimean Bridge were erected.

In fact, this phenomenon is of great historical importance not only for Crimeans or Russians, but also for the whole world. The first month of summer 2016 was marked by the beginning of the installation of the first span structures. Finished installing the piles of the railway bridge in August 2017. In the same month there was a transportation and installation of the railway arch.

In December 2017, the construction of all the supports for the road bridge and 50% of the supports for the railway crossing took place. In April 2018, the process of laying asphalt pavement on the Crimean Bridge highway was completed. The bridge passed acceptance and was put into operation. Despite the fact that at this stage the construction of the automobile part was completed, the workers still built the railway part.

The opening of the road part of the Crimean bridge, which connected the Russian peninsula and the mainland through the Kerch Strait, was a festive and solemn event that will undoubtedly go down in the history of our country. This event took place on May 15, 2018. The honor of the first passage over the bridge fell to the head of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. This event was broadcast live by many Russian TV channels, and all media outlets wrote about it.

The next day, May 16, everyone could pass over the bridge. So, according to statistical data, on this day, the Crimean Bridge was discovered by 14,000 vehicles. Thus, on the very first day of the existence of the Crimean Bridge, the ferry record was broken. To date, all transport passenger communication between mainland Russia and the Crimea peninsula is carried out through the Crimean Bridge. With its construction, these processes have become much easier and faster. The Crimeans and the mainland inhabitants speak positively about the “Construction of the Century”.

In general, according to official data, 227, 92 billion rubles were spent on the construction of the Crimean Bridge. This amount was less than the originally calculated price of 380 million rubles. So, about 9 billion rubles were spent on design and survey work. Creating basic structures for both parts of the bridge (road and rail) costs 170 billion rubles. In addition to these costs, the money was spent on preparatory work, the construction of technical buildings and facilities, and so on.

The Crimean Bridge is one of the most requested phrases in all Internet search engines. Indeed, the “Construction of the Century” attracted the attention of not only the Russian, but also the world community. However, the interest is not only the fact of construction, but also the following events:

• the red cat became the unofficial mascot of the Crimean Bridge; he was even called the Bridge;
• Russia produced several feature films and documentaries on the “Construction of the Century”;
• the press site is often invited to the construction site of the Crimean Bridge; such press tours are visited not only by domestic, but also by foreign journalists;
• on the territory of the Russian Federation was issued a postage stamp with the image of the Crimean bridge; In addition, there are coins and other attributes with a similar image.

It is worth noting that The Crimean bridge is a real miracle created by human hands. Of course, in the first place, this object performs strategic and practical functions, ensuring unhindered transport links between the Crimea peninsula and mainland Russia.

How built the Crimean bridge, see the following video.