- The Mauves-sur-Loire bridges were built between 1878 and 1882.
- Victims of advanced corrosion, they needed work.
- They will reopen to traffic on September 21.
It is not a surprise, but it is all the same a blow for the inhabitants of the East of the Nantes agglomeration. The Mauves bridges, which cross the Loire between the municipalities of Mauves-sur-Loire and Divatte-sur-Loire, are completely closed to traffic from this Monday. And they won't reopen until September 21, which is a seven-month hiatus!
The cause: heavy rehabilitation work required on these 482 m and 90 m metal structures built at the end of the 19th century.
Roadways will be destroyed
In particular, it is necessary to reinforce the metal beams located under the roadways to remedy corrosion problems. "The current pavements will therefore be entirely destroyed and replaced by much lighter concrete slabs," explains the Loire-Atlantique departmental council, owner of the bridges. The metal frames will be completely repainted. And then bridges facilitating the crossing of cyclists and pedestrians will be added.
This first phase will cost 13.5 million euros. A second phase of works is planned after September but it will mainly concern the pillars and foundations and will therefore have little impact on traffic.
How to do without the bridges of Mauves?
In the meantime, the 4,500 vehicles that cross them every day will have to find other solutions to cross the Loire. The nearest Thouaré-sur-Loire bridges should be favored. The department, which expects overcrowding, has installed dynamic traffic lights to “smooth the crossing” during peak hours. The other solutions are to go through the Oudon-Champtoceaux bridge, or even take the Nantes ring road via the Bellevue bridge.
The large metal bridge of Thouaré-sur-Loire had already been rehabilitated in 2017, which had caused a closure of six months.
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