The Gjemnessund Bridge () is a

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

that crosses the Gjemnessundet

strait A strait is a water body connecting two seas or water basins. The surface water is, for the most part, at the same elevation on both sides and flows through the strait in both directions, even though the topography generally constricts the ...

between the mainland and the island of Bergsøya in

Gjemnes Municipality Gjemnes is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway on the Romsdal peninsula. It is part of the Nordmøre region. The administrative centre is the village of Batnfjordsøra, which lies along the Batnfjorden and it is a former steamship ...

Møre og Romsdal Møre og Romsdal (; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in the northernmost part of Western Norway, Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the Molde (town), town of M ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The bridge was the longest suspension bridge in Norway until the opening of the

Hardanger Bridge The Hardanger Bridge () is a suspension bridge across the Eidfjorden branch off of the main Hardangerfjorden in Vestland county, Norway. The bridge connects the municipalities of Ullensvang and Ulvik. It replaced a ferry connection between ...

in 2013, although it did not have the longest span (), being eclipsed by the

Askøy Bridge The Askøy Bridge () is a suspension bridge that crosses the Byfjorden (Hordaland), Byfjorden between the municipalities of Bergen and Askøy in Vestland county, Norway. It is long and has a main span of . Its span was the longest for any suspen ...

Gjemnessund Bridge was opened in 1992, and has 21 spans with a maximum clearance to the sea of . It was built as part of the

Krifast The Kristiansund Mainland Connection ( or abbreviated ''Krifast'') is a road system consisting of the European route E39 highway and Norwegian National Road 70 that connects Kristiansund Municipality to the neighboring islands of Frei, Bergsøya ...

project, the mainland road connection of the city of

Kristiansund Kristiansund (, ; historically spelled Christianssund and earlier named Fosna) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality on the western coast of Norway in the Nordmøre district of Møre og Romsdal counties of Norway, county. The admin ...

(along with the Freifjord Tunnel and the

Bergsøysund Bridge The Bergsøysund Bridge () is a pontoon bridge that crosses the Bergsøysundet strait between the islands of Aspøya, Tingvoll, Aspøya (in Tingvoll Municipality) and Bergsøya, Gjemnes, Bergsøya (in Gjemnes Municipality) in Møre og Romsdal coun ...

). Many bridges slowly deteriorate and need to be repaired because the salty

seawater Seawater, or sea water, is water from a sea or ocean. On average, seawater in the world's oceans has a salinity of about 3.5% (35 g/L, 35 ppt, 600 mM). This means that every kilogram (roughly one liter by volume) of seawater has approximat ...

damages the

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

and the iron inside it. The Gjemnessund Bridge has had a problem with

seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adaptation, adapted to life within the marine ecosystem, marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent ...

s, whose

manure Manure is organic matter that is used as organic fertilizer in agriculture. Most manure consists of animal feces; other sources include compost and green manure. Manures contribute to the fertility of soil by adding organic matter and nut ...

contain salt and

ammonia Ammonia is an inorganic chemical compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the chemical formula, formula . A Binary compounds of hydrogen, stable binary hydride and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinctive pu ...

. The salt and ammonia damages the concrete. To prevent this, the bridge is cleaned, and the critical parts of the concrete are covered with an

elastic Elastic is a word often used to describe or identify certain types of elastomer, Elastic (notion), elastic used in garments or stretch fabric, stretchable fabrics. Elastic may also refer to: Alternative name * Rubber band, ring-shaped band of rub ...

membrane that protects the concrete against the manure and the harmful content.

References

Bridges in Møre og Romsdal Suspension bridges in Norway Bridges completed in 1992 Gjemnes 1992 establishments in Norway European route E39 in Norway Road bridges in Norway {{norway-bridge-stub