Pont Gustave-Flaubert

The Pont Gustave-Flaubert is a vertical-lift bridge over the River Seine in Rouen, Seine-Maritime, Normandy, France. It was officially opened on 25 September 2008 after four years of construction. The bridge itself cost approximately €60 million to build. Additional costs, including work to surrounding infrastructure and approach roads, brought the total cost to €137 million. Construction began in June 2004. Rouen City Council named the bridge after the 19th-century novelist Gustave Flaubert, who was born and died in Rouen.

History

The design team, included the engineering firm Arcadis NV and the consultancy firm Eurodim. The specialist machinery was designed by Aymeric Zublena, one of the architects of the Stade de France, and Michel Virlogeux, designer of the Pont de Normandie Bridge and the Millau Viaduct.

Construction

The contract for the bridge construction, without the approaching viaducts, was €60 million. It was won by Quille, a subsidiary of Bouygues, in association with the Eiffel company, Eiffage and the Belgian firm Victor Buyck. The déclaration d'utilité publique passed in September 2001.

Work began in June 2004 and the installation of "butterflies" (supporting trusses) at the top of the stanchions was completed on 16 and 17 August 2006; the approaches were completed on 21 and 22 August 2006.

On 14 April 2007, the barque Belem, which had been docked for a month, went under the bridge, after initial tests that allowed the bridge to lift enough to let her pass. A crowd from Rouen was present to celebrate the event.

Name
The bridge is named after the writer Gustave Flaubert. The name was finally chosen on 15 December 2006 by Rouen City Council of Rouen, after consultation with the people of Rouen who had a choice between Flaubert and René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle. It was previously known as "the sixth bridge".

Address: N1338, 76100 Rouen, France
Body of water: Seine
Construction cost: €60 million (bridge); €137 million (entire project)
Construction started: 2004
Architects: Michel Virlogeux, Aymeric Zublena, Francois Gillard, Jean-Pierre Ghilardi, Bernard Gausset, Michel Moussard