Irrawaddy Bridge

The Irrawaddy Bridge (Yadanabon) (Burmese: ဧရာဝတီတံတား (ရတနာပုံ)) (also Ayeyarwady Bridge, Yadanabon Bridge, Yadanar Pone Bridge or New Ava Bridge) is a bridge in Mandalay, Myanmar. It crosses the Irrawaddy River, to the southwest of Mandalay and Amarapura and just to the north of the old Ava Bridge, and is also known as the New Ava Bridge. It was completed in 2008.

Irrawaddy Bridge (Yadanabon)
ဧရာဝတီတံတား (ရတနာပုံ)
Ayeyarwady Bridge
Yadanabon Bridge
Yadanabon Bridge
Coordinates21°52′39″N 95°59′42″E
CarriesFour-lane motorway with two pedestrian lanes
CrossesIrrawaddy River
LocaleMandalay Division, Burma
Official nameIrrawaddy Bridge (Yadanabon)
Other name(s)Yadanabon Bridge
Maintained byPublic Works Department
Characteristics
DesignFixed-arch bridge
Total length5,614 feet (1,711 m)
Width49 feet (15 m) two pedestrian lanes of 6 feet (2 m) each
Longest span735 feet (224 m)(x3)
History
Opened11 April 2008
Statistics
Daily traffic2,700
Location

Location

The Yadanabon Bridge spans the Irrawaddy River (Ayeyarwady River) in the Mandalay suburb connects with Sagaing City. It is 2,000 feet (610 m) upstream of the Ava Bridge.[1] which is at the confluence of the Irrawaddy with the Myitnge River, close to the Kyaukse rice fields.[2] The bridge (also known as Ayeyawady Bridge)[3] is the gateway to Yangon, Mandalay and interior other regions.[4] Nearby on the river banks are two 12th century payas known as Shwe-kyet-yet and Shwe-kyet-kya.[5]

History

The old Ava (or Inva or Inwa Bridge) across the Irrawaddy River had a span of 3,948 feet (1,203 m). Built by the British in 1934, until the 1990s,[2] it was the only bridge which spanned this river. The Ava had aged, and its carrying capacity became limited to under 15-ton capacity trucks since 1992. Heavily laden vehicles crossed the river with Z-craft ferries, resulting in less efficient transportation of goods.[4]

To ease the traffic congestion and to help improve the overall economic conditions of Burma, a new bridge was planned by the government. International tender was invited in early 2002 for ts construction. The tender for the highway bridge envisaged planning, design and construction. The bidding process lasted eight months, and the work was awarded to China CAMC Engineering Cc., Ltd. in October 2002. The contract was signed in Rangoon for a tendered amount of US$10.90 million on 19 November 2002.[1] (By 2004, 35 bridges were under construction in Burma, along with the Irrawaddy of Yadanabon.[6]) The new bridge was opened on 11 April 2008.[4][7]

Features
Yadanabon Bridge from Sagaing Hill

Irrawaddy Bridge was built by the Public Works of the Ministry of Construction. It has total span of 5,614 feet (1,711 m) long and has a four-lane motorway of 49 feet (15 m) width with pedestrian lanes of 6 feet (1.8 m) wide on the flanks. It is designed for a carrying capacity of 60 tons.[4] The bridge is a flexible beam structure with three rigid arches of 224 meters each.[1] The main bridge is 3,694 feet (1,126 m) long. Its approach on the Mandalay side is 1,140 feet (350 m) long and that on the Sagaing side is 7780 feet (240 m).[8]

The Thiri Mangala overpass above the railway crossing (which used to hold up traffic) involved a reinforced concrete bridge of 485 feet (148 m) length with a two-lane motorway with a carrying capacity of 60 tons. It is designed to provide a clearance of 52 feet (16 m) width and 17 feet (5.2 m) height to pass the trains.[4]

References
  1. "Contract for Burma Yadanabon Project Signed". China Camc Engineering Co.,Ltd. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  2. Seekins 2006, p. 102.
  3. "Sagaing". Burmas.net. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  4. Aung, Yan Gyi (October 12, 2009). "Ayeyawady Bridge (Yadanabon) facilitates transportation and commodity flow" (pdf). New Light of Burma. Burma Library. p. 8. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  5. Cummings 2000, p. 267.
  6. Gupta, Chaturvedi & Joshi 2004, p. 477.
  7. "Ayeyarwady Bridge (Yadanabon)". Hsdejong. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  8. "Ayeyawady Bridge-Yadanar Pone Bridge". Wikimapia.org. Retrieved 21 September 2013.
Bibliography

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