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Arup, Aas-Jakobsen and NPRA to design Norway's Julsundet crossing, one of the world's longest suspension bridges

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A standing woman with trees behind as a background Snezhana Zapreva Europe Press Office
23 May 2022

Arup, Aas-Jakobsen and the Norwegian Public Roads Administration (NPRA) have signed a contract to deliver detail design for Norway's Julsundet crossing, in what is expected to be one of the longest suspension bridges in the world. 

The project forms part of the E39 Ålesund to Molde upgrade programme, which seeks to strengthen the infrastructure resilience on the E39 road, and will contribute to the ambition of NPRA to create a ferry free coastal highway in the country.

The 2,010m-long suspension bridge will have a main span of 1,625m – one metre longer than Scandinavia's current record-holder, the Great Belt Bridge in Denmark. The bridge will incorporate a separate lane for pedestrian, cyclists and slow moving vehicles such as mopeds.

Julsundet bridge Julsundet bridge

The work will be led by NPRA and Arup will provide engineering consultancy services, drawing on our extensive bridge design experience including nationwide bridge repair programmes. Our team of expert engineers will lead on the orthotropic steel deck design and will carry out a state-of-the-art bridge fatigue analysis, applying detailed modelling and stress extraction techniques to future proof the bridge.

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Building on our business relationship with the Norwegian Public Roads Administration and Aas-Jakobsen, this project is a stepping stone towards developing other major infrastructure projects in Scandinavia. We are engaging our global experts to support the successful delivery of this technically challenging and ambitious design, one of the world's longest suspension bridges. ” Jesper Jensen Jesper Jensen Business Development Manager for Scandinavia

Over the years, Arup has worked on a number of large bridge design projects across the globe, including the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Bridge in Ireland, Queensferry Crossing in United Kingdom, E39 Stord-Os framework in Norway, Gerald Desmond Bridge replacement in the USA and Stonecutters Bridge in Hong Kong.

Find out more about our bridge design work

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