Approval has been granted for construction of a temporary bridge at Tretten in Norway’s Gudbrandsdalen valley to replace the wooden bridge that collapsed in August.
The bridge, about 148m long and 10m wide, crossed the Gudbrandsdalslaagen River near the village of Tretten.
The temporary bridge at Tretten will remain in place until a permanent one is completed, likely between 2026 and 2030. Locals in Tretten have protested to show their dissatisfaction that the process has been delayed, partly due to conservation regulations. Work on the temporary bridge is expected to be completed before mid-April 2023.
The Norwegian Public Roads Administration has been installing temporary bridges after it closed 14 timber structures following the collapse of the Tretten Bridge near Lillehammer. The bridge opened in 2012.
According to Norwegian media reports, the Tretten Bridge broke in two, collapsing into the river stranding two vehicles and their occupants. There were no casualties or injuries in the early morning accident on August 15. The bridge collapsed around 7:30 am and a helicopter helped rescue a truck driver, while the driver of a car in a submerged part of the road deck managed to free himself.
The bridge – two lanes with a pedestrian walkway – connected the E6 and county road 254 in Øyer municipality, just north of Lillehammer. The E6 is Norway’s main north-south highway while the county road is a local road that follows a similar route and is used as a bypass when the E6 is congested or closed.
