The Busan–Geoje Fixed Link (or Geoga Bridge) is an 8.2-kilometer (5.1-mi) bridge-tunnel

fixed link A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

that connects the South Korean city of Busan to Geoje Island. The name of the bridge is Geoga Bridge (거가 대교). The route opened on December 13, 2010 and shortens the travelling distance between Geoje Island and Busan by about 60 kilometers (37 mi). The new road has two lanes in each direction and carries National Road 58. Yeoward 2010, p. 26. The fixed link opens Geoje Island to tourist-related development and saves US$300 million in costs related to traffic delays from the longer route. Cho 2009, p. 25.

Design and construction

The bridge was built under a public-private partnership. GK Fixed Link Corp, a consortium of seven Korean contractors, has a 40-year contract to build, operate and transfer the fixed link. The project is planned to cost US$1.8 billion. The government has provided only one-fourth of the cost; the rest is financed by the consortium to be repaid by tolls during the life of the contract. The lead contractor in the consortium is Daewoo Engineering & Construction, Co. Cho 2009, p. 24. Designers involved with the project include

COWI A/S COWI A/S is an international consulting group, specialising in engineering, environmental science and economics, with headquarters in Lyngby, Denmark. It has been involved in more than 50,000 projects in 175 countries and has approximately 7,300 em ...

(Denmark), Halcrow Group (United Kingdom), Tunnel Engineering Consultants (Netherlands), Pihl and Son (Denmark), Arcadis US (USA), and Ben C. Gerwick (USA).

Route

The route connects Busan, Korea's largest port city, to the shipbuilding industries and tourism destinations on Geoje Island. It replaces either a 210-minute journey by road or a 120-minute journey by ferry. The new route cuts travel time down to 40 minutes. The fixed link starts on Geoje Island, crosses three islets (Jeo, Jungjuk and Daejuk) and ends on Gaduk Island. In addition to the tunnel between Daejuk and Gaduk islands, a bridge is used to cross each of the islets.

Bridge 1

The bridge between Jungjuk and Jeo islands includes a cable-stayed bridge with a main span and side spans. This bridge provides of navigational clearance and has two diamond-shaped pylons. Fraser 2008.

Bridge 2

Between Geoje and Jeo islands, a bridge includes a three-pylon cable-stay bridge. This bridge has two mainspans of with side spans of . The pylons are tall and there is of clearance underneath the bridge.

Tunnel

When it opened, the tunnel became the world’s deepest immersed roadway tunnel ( below mean water level) and the world’s second-longest concrete

immersed tunnel An immersed tube (or immersed tunnel) is a kind of undersea tunnel composed of segments, constructed elsewhere and floated to the tunnel site to be sunk into place and then linked together. They are commonly used for road and rail crossings of r ...

, at . It is Korea's first immersed tunnel. Halcrow project video (wmv), 29 seconds. It became the second-deepest immersed vehicle tunnel after completion of the Marmaray (Bosphorus rail tunnel) in 2013. Rowson 2009. The tunnel is made up of segments constructed in a

dry dock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...

in Anjeon. Each segment was towed by barges and sunk into place. Cho 2009, p. 26.

Toll

(Since 2011)

Notes and references

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External links

Busan-Geoje Link
in the

Structurae Structurae is an online database containing pictures and information about structural engineering, structural and civil engineering works, and their associated engineers, architects, and builders. Its entries are user-generated content, contribu ...

database. Retrieved on 2009-02-22. * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Busan-Geoje Fixed Link Undersea tunnels in Asia Cable-stayed bridges in South Korea Toll bridges in South Korea Toll tunnels in Asia Bridges in Busan Bridges in South Gyeongsang Province Infrastructure completed in 2010 2010 establishments in South Korea Immersed tube tunnels in Asia Bridge–tunnels in Asia