Highway Flyover

In 2009 Europe’s first steel-fibreglass composite bridge was completed in Friedberg. The highway flyover which passes over the B455 is the result of a several year long partnership between Hessen’s department of roads and traffic, the University of Stuttgart and knippershelbig. The design which was developed has several good features which include robustness, sustainability, environmentally friendly, minimization of weight, and minimal corrosion and thus very low maintenance costs. The deck of the bridge was constructed using stretched GRP profiles which were attached to a steel primary structure using an epoxy resin. The combination of GRP deck with the steel primary structure gives the bridge additional rigidity, which reduces deformation. This method can be used to span very long distances, and has the potential to compete with concrete bridges on an economic level. This structure will be used to gather data on the long-term behaviour of the materials and the construction methods. Together with the materials testing department at the University of Stuttgart, we are developing way to monitor the bridge in the long term.