Oland Bridge

The Oland Bridge is a road bridge connecting Kalmar on mainland Sweden to Farjestaden (Ferry Town) on the island of Oland to its east.

Oland Bridge

Official name                   Olandsbron

Carries                             4 lanes of roadway for motor vehicles

Crosses                            Kalmar Strait

Locale                              Kalmar

Total length                     6072 m

Width                              13 m

Longest span                   130 m

Clearance below              36 m

Opening date                  30 September 1972

A little to the south of the western end of the bridge a small wooden pedestrian and bicycle bridge, around 150 m in length and connecting the island of Svino to the mainland, echoes the form of the Oland bridge. This "replica" is clearly visible to anyone crossing to Oland via the main bridge. The bridge is the longest in Sweden and one of the longest in all Europe. The Oresund Bridge linking Sweden with Denmark is longer overall, but not that part of it lying wholly within Sweden.

Construction

The Oland bridge was inaugurated on 30 September 1972. Among the speakers at the ceremony, which took place on the island side of the bridge, were the Crown Prince (today king) Carl Gustaf. The bridge cost 80 million Swedish Kronor to build. Construction took 4.5 years, and about 100,000 cubic meters of concrete was used. The bridge was also prepared for transporting fresh water from the mainland to Oland. The bridge project received much support, but there were also protests. The main objection was that the bridge would threaten the environment, possibly causing a huge influx of tourists to Oland and its valuable nature.