In the autumn of 1916 in Ulyanovsk (the old namecity - Simbirsk), the opening of a new large bridge. At that time it was the largest railway crossing over the Volga in Europe. Subsequently, he played a major role in the economy of the province and Siberia.
Who made the decision to build?
In the XIX century laid the railway in Simbirsk,and immediately it was intended to build a bridge across the Volga. Previously, goods brought along the tracks were unloaded from the wagons. In the summer on barges were transported to the other side. In winter, goods moved from shore to shore along a frozen river. On the opposite side, everything was loaded into the train cars again.
In the autumn of 1910, Stolypin sailed along the Volga.And for some time I moored to the Simbirsk shore. During this visit, Prince Dolgoruky, merchants and honorary citizens of Simbirsk brought to the Minister arguments about the relevance, importance and the need to build a bridge to achieve a high economic recovery in the city. Stolypin agreed and took under his personal control the construction of a railway bridge.
Start of construction
In 1913, began construction of the bridge.An engineer with the experience of N. A. Belelyubsky, a former expert in bridge engineering and structural mechanics, took up the design. Prior to this, he built more than a hundred bridges, also engaged in the construction of large railway bridges, across long and wide rivers.
At the plant in Donetsk (Ukraine) producedmetal structures for the construction of the bridge. They were brought to Simbirsk, and they were collected at the construction site. In the Urals, granite was mined for facing piers. In the Simbirsk province itself mined stone and rubble. The spans were made of riveted iron, this was used for the first time in world practice. For installation used the latest technology. For underwater work caissons and bridge cranes were used. The whole year there was a construction, even in strong winter frosts it did not stop. In the summer of 1914 there was a fire on the bridge. A landslide passed from the mountain, which destroyed eight fully rebuilt piers and destroyed many buildings, houses and almost the entire railway station. Because of this, the construction of the bridge was difficult for some time.
In the shortest possible time completed construction of a largerailway bridge. It took only 2.5 years to build this giant. There is a high level of security: during the construction work there were no deaths. In October 1916, construction was fully completed.
Opening
The bridge began to operate in 1916, October 18.And immediately launched freight. In honor of the beginning of the bridge, local priests held a prayer service together with the Bishop of Simbirsk and Syzran and the rite of consecration of the railway bridge. The governor of the city of Simbirsk thanked the builders and those who decided to build a bridge. At the time of the solemn ceremony, the bridge was named “His Imperial Majesty Nicholas II”. But soon the name changed - it was renamed “Bridge of Freedom”. It happened in 1917.
During the retreat from the city, the White Guards in 1918 blew up one span, which was quickly restored by the new government.
Car traffic across the Imperial Bridge
During the construction of the Kuibyshev reservoirThe piers of the bridge have expanded. During the reconstruction, the traffic on the Imperial Bridge in Ulyanovsk was not stopped. November 6, 1956 opened the railway traffic. When completed the reconstruction, the new span structures were converted for automobile traffic. Cars began to ride across the bridge in 1958 at the end of the summer (August 10). On the lanes for the movement of cars attached support, for these works were involved divers.
Zheleznodorozhny Imperial Bridge in UlyanovskIt was built using riveted joints, and automobile - by welding, this was a new word in the construction of bridges. After the reconstruction was completed, the Imperial Bridge in Ulyanovsk and the coast were lifted, the railway tracks were returned to the place, and from that time the road bridge began to work.
The last reconstruction of the Imperial Bridge inUlyanovsk was produced seven years - from 2003 to 2010. The decision on reconstruction was made due to fatigue (aging) metal. The imperial bridge in Ulyanovsk was not closed to traffic at the time of the repair work.
In the fall of 2016, the old asphalt pavement was dismantled and a new one was laid. The closure of the Imperial Bridge in Ulyanovsk for repairs in 2016 was carried out at night, from 9 pm to 5 am.
