17.04.2023 (Aluminium Association)

Since 2017, 14 aluminium bridges have been built in Russia, and aluminium has been used in bridge construction in nine regions of the country. Such data was given by Evgeny Vasiliev, Head of Transport Infrastructure at the 19th annual conference of RADOR Association. The event, organised this year in Tula, is dedicated to modern technologies of repair and maintenance of highways and artificial structures.

Its participants were welcomed by Sergey Egorov, Deputy Governor of the Tula Region. "The main goal of the national project "Safe and Quality Roads" is to improve the quality of roads and artificial structures, as well as to ensure road safety. This conference will feature a wide-ranging discussion of road repair and maintenance technologies. Such meetings are necessary to find new solutions and introduce modern technologies in road construction," said Sergey Egorov.

Rodion Dudnik, Minister of Transport and Roads of the Tula Region, made a report at the conference.

"The national project "Safe and Quality Roads" is being successfully implemented in the Tula region. All established indicators are met each year. Governor Alexey Dyumin pays special attention to the introduction of advanced technologies in road repair. This allows to increase the service life of the road surface and ensure road safety," the minister said.

It is worth noting that the first aluminium elevated crossing in the Central Federal District, opened in Tula in October 2020, was built as part of the national project "Safe and Quality Roads". The Aluminium Association and its member companies took an active part in the implementation of this project.

A representative of the Aluminium Association spoke at the RADOR forum in Tula about the use of aluminium solutions in bridge construction to reduce the cost of repair and maintenance of road infrastructure. According to Evgeny Vasiliev, in addition to Tula, bridge structures with aluminium structures have been installed in Nizhny Novgorod, Moscow, Krasnoyarsk and Samara. Today, the specialists of the Aluminium Association are working on 17 sites, including those in Voronezh, Kemerovo and Ryazan regions, as well as in the Republic of Mari-El.

According to the expert, aluminium bridges have a number of advantages, which are based on the unique set of properties of aluminium and its alloys. The metal is highly resistant to corrosion and temperature fluctuations, its structures are characterised by low weight with high strength, it is possible to further increase the wear resistance characteristics of the structure by means of anodising and to give the bridge structure an attractive appearance.

The use of aluminium solutions in bridge construction makes the task of installation much easier. Large-sized aluminium bridge structures are completely manufactured in-house and assembled offsite. Experience has shown that the installation of a pedestrian crossing span does not involve restricting vehicular traffic for more than two hours. The construction and reconstruction of aluminium bridges is possible even in confined residential areas and forest parks. Aluminium bridge structures can also be delivered to remote and inaccessible areas, which significantly expands the geographical range of applicability of aluminium solutions in bridge construction.

What is fundamentally important for regions when choosing to build an aluminium bridge is the possibility of saving money on maintaining the structure.

"The maximum effect from the use of aluminium alloy bridge structures is achieved when the contract is calculated taking into account the life cycle of the object", - Evgeny Vasiliev stressed in his speech.

To prove his point, he cited the example of the country's oldest aluminium pedestrian bridge, the Kolomensky Bridge in St. Petersburg, which is more than half a century old. The metal structures of the span have not been repaired during its operation, however, they are still in good condition today. A recent inspection of the Kolomenskoye Bridge did not reveal any defects reducing its durability and load capacity. The structure is assessed as operable.

In recent years, the Aluminium Association has become a centre of competence in the field of aluminium bridge design. Its specialists have designed more than 20 bridges. The submitted projects received 16 positive conclusions from the State Expertise Committee, including Glavgosexpertiza. The optimal design solutions developed in the Association allow to significantly reduce the cost of aluminium bridges. Notable savings are provided by the use of standard designs - the Association offers 10 standard albums.

In the context of forming a new image of modern transport infrastructure, Evgeny Vasiliev presented a number of aluminium-based projects related to the use of self-supporting translucent structures, noise screens and stop pavilions of various types.

Concluding his speech at the forum, Evgeny Vasiliev shared his ideas on the maintenance and operation of road infrastructure facilities. Thus, it is proposed to include an aluminium option in the bridge design specification as part of the feasibility study for the entire life cycle of the structure. In addition, there is a proposal to consider the possibility of installing or reconstructing a pedestrian walkway gallery on existing elevated pedestrian crossings to increase the service life and reduce the cost of ownership of the structure. Finally, when improving public spaces in municipal districts, it is proposed to replace emergency small pedestrian bridges built by artisanal methods with bridge kits. The latter solution was successfully tested last year in Nizhny Novgorod.