At the invitation of Straßen.NRW, South Westphalia regional branch, this year's bridge construction excursion to the Rinsdorf and Rälsbach viaducts south of Siegen took place on 23.11.2018. The existing structures are being demolished and replaced by new structures as part of the A45 expansion project.
The participants were informed in detail about the planning and execution of the structures under construction. While the demolition and replacement construction of the Rälsbach viaduct can be carried out separately for each directional lane, the new construction of the Rinsdorf viaduct requires special measures due to the one-piece superstructure. The future northern part of the structure (Dortmund direction) will be built next to the existing structure for the construction period and then - after demolition of the existing structure and construction of the southern part of the structure (Frankfurt direction) - moved into its final position, including the foundations and the approx. 70 m high piers.
The photo on the left shows the Rinsdorf viaduct to be replaced and the piers of the future northern section currently under construction. The photo on the right shows the existing southern structure of the Rälsbach viaduct and the current status of work on the abutments and piers of the future northern section.
