Strelasund Crossing is the two links to the German island of

Rügen Rügen (; Rani: ''Rȯjana'', ''Rāna''; , ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic ci ...

(''Rugia'') over the

Strelasund The Strelasund or Strela Sound is a sound (geography), sound of the Baltic Sea which separates Rügen from the Germany, German mainland. It is crossed by a bridge called the Strelasund Crossing from Stralsund. It runs northwest to southeast from a ...

to the West Pomeranian mainland near

Stralsund Stralsund (; Swedish language, Swedish: ''Strålsund''), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Stralsund (German language, German: ''Hansestadt Stralsund''), is the fifth-largest city in the northeastern German federal state of Mecklen ...

: the Rügen Bridge or Rugia Bridge () and the Rugia Causeway (). Ferry services between Stralsund and Altefähr and the Glewitz Ferry ("") between Stahlbrode and Zudar are also available to cross the Strelasund sound. The ''Rügendamm'' was the first fixed crossing over the sound of Strelasund, for both the old

Bundesstraße 96 The Bundesstraße 96 (B 96) is a federal highway in Germany. It begins in Zittau in Saxony, close to the border triangle between Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic, heads north through Berlin and ends in Sassnitz on the island of Rügen in ...

, the Stralsund–Sassnitz railway and a combined footpath and cycle path. It was completed 1936/1937. ''Rügenbrücke'' is the name of the three-lane viaduct completed in 2007 exclusively for motor traffic, between the village of Altefähr on Rugia Island and the

Hanseatic The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

and

world heritage World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

town of

; as part of the concept to turn the B96 and

European route E22 European route E22 is one of the longest European routes. It has a length of about . Many of the E-roads have been extended into Asia since the year 2000; the E22 was extended on 24 June 2002. Route United Kingdom Port of Holyhead () * ...

into a

ring road A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist in reducin ...

. Both bridges are operated in parallel. The Rugia Bridge has an overall length of , which makes it one of Central Europe's largest bridges.

Bridge crossings

Rügen Bridge

Rügen Bridge () is a

cable-stayed bridge A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which wire rope, cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or wikt:stay#Etymology 3, stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, norm ...

made of pre-stressed concrete that spans the

between the city of Stralsund and the island of Rügen. The bridge was built to replace the aging ''Rügendamm'', which will remain in service to provide a rail link and serve local traffic to

Dänholm Dänholm (literally ''Danes' Isle'') is a small island on the German coast of the Baltic Sea. It is situated in the Strelasund just east of Stralsund. Both bridges linking Rügen with the mainland, Rügendamm and Rügenbrücke, run across it. ...

island. The bridge has three lanes, the centre one being demand-activated. The main element of the 4,100 metre crossing is the 2,831 metre-long main span over the Strelasund. The crossing comprises a total of seven sections, five of which are bridge structures: * Embankment on the mainland side in Stralsund, * Two approach bridges in Stralsund, * Viaduct over the Ziegelgraben, * Dänholm approach bridge, * Strelasund approach bridge, * Strelasund Bridge, and * Embankment on the island of Rügen.

Southern ramp

The southern bridge ramp begins behind its junction with the Stralsund ring road (the B 96 federal road) and consists, of an 85.53-metre-long embankment structure, measured to the

abutment An abutment is the substructure at the ends of a bridge span or dam supporting its superstructure. Single-span bridges have abutments at each end that provide vertical and lateral support for the span, as well as acting as retaining walls ...

of the first approach bridge. Beyond it are the two Stralsund approach bridges (''Vorlandbrücken Stralsund'') with gradients of up to 4%. The first, structure BW 1.1, is 327.5-metre-long bridge made of pre-stressed concrete with ten sections and a twin

prestressed Prestressed concrete is a form of concrete used in construction. It is substantially prestressed ( compressed) during production, in a manner that strengthens it against tensile forces which will exist when in service. Post-tensioned concreted is ...

beam slab girder as the superstructure. BW 1.2 is a 317.0-metre-long bridge with six sections and a single-cell steel composite superstructure that was manufactured by the steelworks in Neumarkt-Sengenthal. An architectural feature is the B 96 approach road section with its two pairs of Y-supports, which enable the large column spacing of 72 metres at constant height. The railings of the approach bridges have 0.70-metre-high inside walls with laminated safety glass panels as wind deflectors and spray shields. The structures are founded on driven concrete piles cast in-situ.

New Ziegelgraben Bridge (viaduct)

The new ''Ziegelgraben Bridge'' (BW 2), designed as a viaduct, crosses the waterway of the ''Ziegelgraben'', an arm of the

which separates Stralsund from the island of

. It has a length of 583.30 metres. The two main section, 126 metres (on the mainland side) and 198 metres (on the Dänholm side), are designed as a

with a three-cell steel box girder frame, which was made in the Neumarkt-Sengenthal steelworks. The bridge enables shipping to pass with a clearance of 42 metres. The 128-metre-high, light blue pylon is divided into two parts: an approximately 40-metre-high base of

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

and an upper part of

steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

. The superstructure is separated from the base by bridge bearings. The base of the main pillar consists of 40 bored pilings with a 1.5 metre diameter. 32 harp-shaped, diagonally tensioned steel cables suspend the two main openings from the drop-shaped pylon. Rügen Bridge is fitted with suspension cables using a system unique in Germany, whereby they are triple-protected from corrosion: first the cables are

galvanized Galvanization ( also spelled galvanisation) is the process of applying a protective zinc coating to steel or iron, to prevent rusting. The most common method is hot-dip galvanizing, in which the parts are coated by submerging them in a bath o ...

, secondly they are covered with a coating of

polyethylene Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging (plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including bott ...

, and finally with special wax as well. The cables were tested for a year at the

Technical University of Munich The Technical University of Munich (TUM or TU Munich; ) is a public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. It specializes in engineering, technology, medicine, and applied and natural sciences. Established in 1868 by King Ludwig II ...

, and finally approved by the Federal Ministry. The steel cables, with a total mass of up to 135 tons, consist of 34 individual strands that are bundled into a sheath to form a single cable with a diameter of 180 mm. They are rated for a tension of 4000 kN. The railings of the new Ziegelgraben Bridge have a inside lining with laminated safety glass as a wind deflector.

Northern bridge ramp

The northern bridge ramp consists of three bridges, an embankment and a road section. After the main bridge comes the Dänholm approach bridge (''Vorlandbrücke Dänholm'', BW 3), a 532.3-metre-long approach bridge structure, and the Strelasund approach bridge (''Vorlandbrücke Strelasund'', BW 4), with a length of 532.2 metres. Both structures have a 10-section, single-cell pre-stressed box girder superstructure and are anchored on bored pilings made of cast-in-place concrete. The railings of the Dänholm bridge are designed with a internal lining of laminated safety glass as a wind deflector. The final bridge structure is the 539.0-metre-long Strelasund Bridge (''Strelasundbrücke'', BW 5). This also has a single-cell prestressed concrete box girder superstructure. The last section of the Strelasund Crossing runs down another embankment. The length of this embankment is 455.95 metres, beyond that is a further 732.0 metres of roadway. Filled with 225,000 m³ of earth, the ramp sides have sheet pilings covering an area of 20,690 m², that runs up to the junction of the crossing with the transport hub of Altefähr. In this area there is a cycle path underpass.

Rügen Causeway

Rügen Causeway (''Rügendamm'', literally "Rügen Embankment") is the name of the original road connecting

Island with the City of

on the mainland of the

German state The Federal Republic of Germany is a federation and consists of sixteen partly sovereign ''states''. Of the sixteen states, thirteen are so-called area-states ('Flächenländer'); in these, below the level of the state government, there is a ...

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; ), also known by its Anglicisation, anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a Federated state, state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's States of Germany, sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpom ...

. The road was built in the 1930s and opened in October 1936. The ''Rügendamm'' consists of two parts: * Strelasund Bridge is a bridge and

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet T ...

spanning the

and * Ziegelgraben Bridge, a

bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...

over the ''Ziegelgraben'' stream. This bridge opens several times a day to allow for the passage of large ships. Prior to the construction of the new Rügen Bridge, the drawbridge bridge was a source of major traffic congestion. The ''Rügendamm'' provides the only road and rail access to

island.

Ferry crossings

Between Stralsund and Altefähr there is also a ferry crossing operated by small passenger ships, which are used exclusively for foot passengers. It is operated by the '' Weiße Flotte''.

History

For thousands of years the Strelasund has separated the island of Rügen from what is today the West Pomeranian mainland. For at least seven millennia, people have settled on the island, establishing their holy sites here too, such as the Swantevit site at

Cape Arkona Cape Arkona (), also spelled Arcona, is a 45-metre (150-foot) high Cape (geography), cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It forms the tip of the Wittow peninsula, just a few kilometres north of the Jasmund National P ...

. From the 12th century,

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

spread to the island. The pagan sites fell into ruins or were slighted. These sites had previously been a destination for many pilgrims also from the mainland. They used boats to cross the sound; boats were also used for trade between the island and the mainland.

Old ferry

The strait was crossed at many different places, because the island lies within sight of the mainland coast along a long stretch. The shortest distance, however, was between the sites of the modern town of Stralsund and the village of Altefähr. This point was also very conveniently situated because of the intermediate island of Stralow (later called Dänholm). From here a regular ferry service evolved; around 1000 or 1100

herring Herring are various species of forage fish, belonging to the Order (biology), order Clupeiformes. Herring often move in large Shoaling and schooling, schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate wate ...

was already being traded here and, during excavations on the island of Rügen, even Arabic coins were found. The two ferry stages developed into larger settlements following the arrival of Christianity brought by the Danes. In particular, the ferry village of Stralow (''stral'' means 'arrow' in Middle Low German and Slavic) developed rapidly. At the beginning of the 13th century more and more settlers came, ''inter alia'' from

Westphalia Westphalia (; ; ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the h ...

. Their settlement was encouraged by the princes of Rügen and in 1234 Prince Wizlaw I gave

town rights Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

to Stralow. The ferry service to Alte Fähre ('Old Ferry') as the place on Rügen was named was becoming increasingly important; more and more goods and wares were traded over the crossing. In 1293 Stralsund became a member of the

Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

and the movement of goods between the island of Rügen and the mainland grew in importance and scope.

Dänholm Ferry

A ferry between Dänholm and the mainland site of Stralsund was predominantly used by the military. It was established in mid-July 1935, after the completion of the Ziegelgraben Bridge for road traffic.

2nd Strelasund Crossing

In 2004, construction of a new bridge, called the 2nd Strelasund Crossing (''2. Strelasundquerung''), commenced. German Chancellor

Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German retired politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. She is the only woman to have held the office. She was Leader of the Opposition from 2002 to 2005 and Leade ...

opened the new bridge on 20 October 2007. The name of this new bridge is the Rügen Bridge (''Rügenbrücke''). The Rügen Bridge is a one-tower suspension bridge that has nineteen piers holding it up from the water. The connection has a length of , the new bridge is long and the centre pylon is tall. The new bridge crosses but does not provide access to

island.

Citations

Literature

* Horst Auerbach (Red.): ''Von den Postseglern nach Schweden zur Hochbrücke über den Strelasund''. Schriftenreihe des Marinemuseums Dänholm, H. 9, Förderverein des Marinemuseums Dänholm e. V., Stralsund, 2004. * Herbert Ewe: ''Geschichte der Hansestadt Stralsund''. H. Böhlaus Nachf., Weimar 1984, 1985. * Herbert Ewe: ''Stralsund''. Carl Hinstorff, Rostock 1965, 1987, * Herbert Ewe, Harry Hardenberg, Günter Ewald: ''Stralsund. Die Stadt am Meer''. Carl Hinstorff, Rostock, 1997, * [ftp://ftp2.stahl-online.de/bms/download/publikationen/presse/stahlbautag2004/Vortragsreihe_II.pdf Karl Kleinhanß: ''Die 2. Strelasundquerung – "Das neue Tor nach Rügen"''. Tagungsband für Stahlbautag 2004]
Martin Steinkühler: ''Bau der 2. Strelasundquerung''. In:''Tiefbau'', Vol. 4, 118. Jahrgang, April 2006, p. 186-191
(pdf file; 5.11 MB) * Wolfgang Rudolph: ''Stralsund. Die Stadt am Meer''. edited by Käthe Miethe. Carl Hinstorff, Rostock, 1955.

External links

{{Commons category, Strelasundquerung
2. Strelasund Crossing – description in English
Stralsund Road-rail bridges Buildings and structures in Vorpommern-Rügen Cable-stayed bridges in Germany Bridges completed in 1936 Bridges completed in 2007 Road bridges in Germany Railway bridges in Germany Rügen