Liberty Bridge ( sr, Мост слободе, Most slobode) is a
cable-stayed bridge
A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, normally forming a fan-like pattern o ...
on the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
river in
Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; hu, Újvidék, ; german: Neusatz; see below for other names) is the second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pan ...
,
Vojvodina
Vojvodina ( sr-Cyrl, Војводина}), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia. It lies within the Pannonian Basin, bordered to the south by the national capital ...
,
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
. The bridge was opened for traffic on 23 October 1981. During that time, the bridge was the world record holder in the category of bridges with cable-stayed design. It was destroyed during
NATO bombardment on 3 April 1999. It was rebuilt from 2003 to 2005 and reopened on 7 October 2005.
Name
The name ''Liberty Bridge'' was given during the first opening of the bridge on 23 October 1981 as it was opened during the 37th anniversary of the liberation of Novi Sad in World War II.
Location
Liberty Bridge is the most upstream Novi Sad bridge over the Danube river within the urban area. It connects the Bačka and Srem sides of the City of Novi Sad, specifically
Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; hu, Újvidék, ; german: Neusatz; see below for other names) is the second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pan ...
and
Sremska Kamenica
Sremska Kamenica (Serbian Cyrillic: ''Сремска Каменица'', ) is a town and urban neighborhood of Novi Sad, in Serbia.
Name
In Serbian, the town is known as ''Sremska Kamenica'' (Сремска Каменица), in Croatian ...
. It connects Novi Sad with
State Road 21, which goes through
Fruška Gora
Fruška gora ( sr-Cyrl, Фрушка гора; hu, Tarcal-hegység) is a mountain in Syrmia, administratively part of Serbia with a part of its western side extending into eastern Croatia. The area under Serbian administration forms the countr ...
to
Ruma
Ruma (; hu, Árpatarló) is a town and municipality in the Srem District of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Serbia. As of 2011, the town has a population of 30,076, while the municipality has a population of 54,339.
History
Traces of orga ...
,
A3 motorway, and western Serbia.
History
Urban Planning
The strong economic development of Novi Sad during the 1960s and 1970s created the conditions for the city to gradually expand to the Srem side (the area of Mišeluk and further up the slopes of Fruška gora). This required the city authorities, and above all the city planners, to start creating framework urban conditions for building a bridge and relieving traffic from the city centre.
The first such conditions were created by the Novi Sad Urban Institute in 1970. The Novi Sad Municipal Assembly decides on the construction of the bridge in December 1973. The architects of the bridge were academics Nikola Hajdin, Gojko Nenadić and Predrag Želalić.
NATO Bombing of Novi Sad
On 3 April 1999, at 7:55 pm local time, a rocket struck the Liberty Bridge during the
NATO bombing campaign against Yugoslavia.
Spasoje Smiljanić. Novosti: ''Ubijeni prvo mostovi'' (in Serbian). 7 March 2009. Accessed 15 June 2017. Although the bridge gradually collapsed into the Danube River
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
, there were no deaths thanks to a local fisherman named Velimir Teodorović who rescued nine civilians from the destroyed bridge.
Construction
First Construction
Work began on 22 September 1976, when the first pier on the left bank of the Danube was stabbed. During the construction, the attention of the experts was focused on three details: The construction of the bars for pillar 17, where there were traces of land slides; the assembly of the steel structure, in pieces, weighing 200 tonnes, without scaffolding, with the help of the Derrick cranes; and the assembly of the steel ropes, which was original.
Everything was done perfectly, with a deviation of only 13 millimetres, between two parts of the structure, when the last central construction of the bridge was put in place.
The bridge was inaugurated for traffic on 23 October 1981, with the presence of tens of thousands of citizens.
Rebuilding
Rebuilding the bridge cost the city of Novi Sad 40 million euros and lasted for 2 years and 22 days. Maja Gojković
Maja Gojković ( sr-Cyrl, Маја Гојковић; born 22 May 1963) is a Serbian politician serving as deputy prime minister of Serbia and minister of culture and information since 2020. A member of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), she ...
, at the time mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
of Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; hu, Újvidék, ; german: Neusatz; see below for other names) is the second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pan ...
, reopened it on 7 October 2005. The official reopening was held a few days later, with officials from the European Agency for Reconstruction
The European Agency for Reconstruction used to manage EU's main assistance programmes in Serbia, Kosovo ''(under UNSCR 1244/99)'', Montenegro and North Macedonia. The Agency was headquartered in Thessaloniki, Greece, with operational centres in P ...
present.
Controversies
The bridge's reconstruction and opening was a cause for political clashes; one side saying Novi Sad and its citizens should be thankful to EU for the gift of the reconstructed bridge, and the other that EU was obliged to reconstruct it anyway, as a part of war damages compensation.
See also
* List of bridges in Serbia
This list of bridges in Serbia lists bridges of particular historical, scenic, architectural or engineering interest. Road and railway bridges, viaducts, aqueducts and footbridges are included.
Historical and architectural interest bridges
Ma ...
* List of crossings of the Danube
This is a list of crossings of the Danube river, from its source in Germany to its mouth in the Black Sea. Next to each bridge listed is information regarding the year in which it was constructed and for what use it was constructed (foot bridge ...
References
External links
Bridges of Novi Sad
*
Coordinates
In geometry, a coordinate system is a system that uses one or more numbers, or coordinates, to uniquely determine the position of the points or other geometric elements on a manifold such as Euclidean space. The order of the coordinates is sig ...
:
Bridges in Novi Sad
Buildings and structures in Novi Sad
Bridges completed in 1981
Cable-stayed bridges in Serbia
Demolished bridges
Bridges completed in 2005
Bridges over the Danube
Rebuilt buildings and structures in Serbia
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