Bechyně Bridge () also known as Bechyně Rainbow, rarely Rainbow Bridge, originally called the Jubilee Bridge, is a unique

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete, also called ferroconcrete or ferro-concrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having higher tensile strength or ...

arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its structural load, loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either si ...

over the Lužnice river on the eastern edge of

Bechyně Bechyně (; ) is a town in Tábor District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 4,800 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, ur ...

in the

South Bohemian Region The South Bohemian Region () is an administrative unit (''Regions of the Czech Republic, kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located mostly in the southern part of its historical land of Bohemia, with a small part in southwestern Moravia. The western ...

of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. It is a combined bridge for

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

and

rail traffic Various terms are used for passenger railway lines and equipment; the usage of these terms differs substantially between areas: Rapid transit A rapid transit system is an electric railway characterized by high speed (~) and rapid acceleratio ...

, used by Czech Route 122 (

Týn nad Vltavou Týn nad Vltavou (; ) is a town in České Budějovice District České Budějovice District () is a Okres, district in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of České Budějovice. Administrative division Česk ...

–Bechyně–

Opařany Opařany () is a municipality and village in Tábor District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,400 inhabitants. Administrative division Opařany consists of seven municipal parts (in brackets population according t ...

) and the

Tábor–Bechyně railway The Tábor–Bechyně railway was the first electrified railway line in the Czech Republic, opening in 1903. History The proposal for construction of the line was submitted to the Czech Diet in 1896. In 2020, it was announced that the line wo ...

line. During passage of trains, road traffic from Týn nad Vltavou to Bechyně is stopped by a crossing safety device without a barrier; the opposite direction of traffic is unaffected by the train. In 2014 the bridge was declared a national

cultural monument A national heritage site is a heritage site having a value that has been registered by a governmental agency as being of national importance to the cultural heritage or history of that country. Usually such sites are listed in a heritage registe ...

Technical data

The bridge is made of reinforced concrete, with a height over the

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

below of less than 60

meter The metre (or meter in US spelling; symbol: m) is the base unit of length in the International System of Units (SI). Since 2019, the metre has been defined as the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of of ...

s. The total length is 190.5 m, and the width is 8.9 m. The main arc has a span of 90 m and a rise of 38 m, and a subsidiary field of 4 × 13.5 m and 3 × 15.5 m.Naše mosty historické a současné, Dušan Josef, 1984 The main field is made up of two arched passports connected by bracings. The distance of the arches at the top is 6 m, at the base 8.25 m, and the peak height of the columns is 28 m. Between September 2003 and October 2004, repair, reconstruction and control work were carried out on the bridge, as well as on the track and road.

References

Bridges over the Lužnice Tábor District Bridges completed in 1928 1928 establishments in Czechoslovakia National cultural monuments of the Czech Republic {{CzechRepublic-struct-stub