The Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda (Mitma) today puts into service the new bridge of the N-523 on the Rivera de la Troya stream, definitively restoring traffic on the road that connects Cáceres and Badajoz after the damage generated by the Efraín storm in December.
Thus, Mitma concludes the emergency work for the reconstruction of the section of the Extremadura road affected by the storm, which ruined the transversal drainage work at the height of km 45, between Puebla de Obando and Roca de la Sierra, forcing the total cut of the N-523.
With the opening of the bridge, the temporary detour for light vehicles, including school transport vehicles, activated in January, will be closed. For their part, heavy vehicles will be able to stop using the bypass through the A-5 enabled after the storm.
New bridge
The bridge, built to restore the collapsed drainage work, consists of a panel of beams and concrete slab with a light (distance between supports) of 40 meters (m) and 12.25 meters wide. The beams are made of prestressed concrete, with an edge of 1.65 m and are spaced by 2.23 m. On the beams there is a reinforced concrete slab executed “in situ” with a minimum edge of 0.25 m. In order not to reduce the hydraulic section (water flow passage space under the structure) available, the road level has been raised in a localized manner between 1 and 2 meters.
The board rests on two “loading” stirrups each formed by a transverse beam supported by 4 piles of 1.2 m in diameter and 10 m in length, embedded in the rocky slate terrain.
Other performances
After the bridge was put into service, some drainage and slope repair work continues on the N-523 and A-5 (Mérida) in the province of Badajoz, which is expected to be completed during the month of August and without affecting traffic. The actions planned for the province of Cáceres will be completed this same month of July.
Thus, in addition to the bridge, the solutions undertaken have mainly consisted of the reconstruction of the collapsed embankments, foundations, berms, drains, firmes and containment systems.
Since the floods and river floods caused by the storm in December, Mitma has been working intensively to remedy the important consequences as soon as possible, starting with the establishment of the signage and marking of the detected incidents, the inventory of damages suffered and the analysis of all the technical solutions for each deterioration, as well as the estimation of the costs and establishment of provisional diversion to ensure the fluidity of traffic.
In this regard, Mitma issued a credit of 6.1 million euros to remedy the serious consequences on the State Road Network in Extremadura for the Efrain Basin: the N-523, the Southwest A-5 Motorway in the province of Cáceres, the N-5A, the Silver Route A-66 Motorway in its northern section within the province of Cáceres, the N-630, the N-430 and the N-502.
New motorway A-58
The rapid reaction of the Ministry, which at the end of December approved the emergency declaration for the reconstruction of the sections affected by the heavy rainfall, is a further sign of the strong commitment of the Government to the infrastructures of Extremadura, where work has already begun on the extension of the A-58 to improve the connection between the two provinces.
These first works, awarded for 79 million euros (VAT included), involve the construction of the first stretch of the continuation of the Extremadura motorway (A-58), which is currently in service between Trujillo and Cáceres, and which will connect Cáceres with Badajoz.
This 13.5 km long stretch begins in the vicinity of the city of Cáceres, links with the A-66, and runs along the plains of Cáceres (passing over the Salor and Ayuela rivers). The route runs from northeast to southwest, remaining substantially parallel to the trace of the N-523 by the west of it.
In addition, in mid-June the Ministry formalized the contract of services for the drafting of the project of tracing and construction of the A-58 stretch between Botoa and Badajoz, in the province of Badajoz, for 1.7 million euros (VAT included).