Rande Bridge - History

History

It was designed by Italian engineer Fabrizio de Miranda, the Spaniard Florencio del Pozo (who was also in charge of its foundations), and Alfredo Passaro. The bridge was built in 1978. It forms part of the Atlántico toll road. It was exclusively a toll bridge until 2006; the toll was abolished in the section between Vigo and O Morrazo but there is still a toll on the other routes.

It has a length of 1,558 metres, its pillars have a height of 148 metres and its main span measures 401 metres. Although it was not the biggest (cable-stayed) span in the world when it opened, it was the longest span with more than two lanes. The bridge, which links Redondela and Moaña through the Strait of Rande, is an emblematic piece of engineering in the ria of Vigo.

It currently carries around 50,000 vehicles per day. It is believed that there will be congestion problems in the near future, so several alternatives are being planned. Since its opening to traffic in 1981, 231 million vehicles have passed through it. It cost 3.658 billion pesetas to build at the time and it has been recouped several times thanks to the recently-abolished tolls (23 May 2006).

As a result of the rise in traffic every year, a new bridge is being planned for the Ría in order to distribute traffic evenly. The new bridge will perhaps be on the eastern side of Vigo city, linking the Bouzas bypass to the O Morrazo highway in Cangas, although a very long bridge would be required; a tunnel has also been proposed but this could be much more complex.