The Hörn Bridge () is a

folding bridge A folding bridge is a type of moveable bridge engineered to fold. This allows ship traffic to pass through the waterway that the bridge spans. An example of a folding bridge is the Hörnbrücke ( Hörn Bridge) in the city of Kiel in the German ...

in the city of

Kiel Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...

in the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

state of

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; ; ; ; ; occasionally in English ''Sleswick-Holsatia'') is the Northern Germany, northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical Duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of S ...

. The bridge spans the end of the

Kiel Fjord Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Bay of Ki ...

(called ''Hörn'') and was designed by

Gerkan, Marg and Partners Gerkan, Marg & Partners (gmp) is an international architectural company based in Hamburg, Germany. The company was founded in 1965 by Meinhard von Gerkan and , and now has more than 300 employees in 13 offices. In the same year the archi ...

Design and construction

The ''Hörn Bridge'' is a three-segment

bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...

with a main span of that folds in the shape of the letter ''"N"''. The bridge was built in 1997 and cost DM 16 million. Many Kielians were skeptical in regard to the design. There were repeated malfunctions of the mechanism upon startup, hence one of its nicknames, the "Klappt-Nix-Brücke" (Works-not Bridge). In order to ensure crossing for pedestrians and cyclists, a hydraulically operated

retractable bridge A retractable bridge is a type of moveable bridge in which the deck can be rolled or slid backwards to open a gap while traffic crosses, usually a ship on a waterway. This type is sometimes referred to as a thrust bridge. Retractable bridges d ...

was built directly adjacent as an interim solution and is still used during repair and maintenance of the folding bridge. The ''Hörn Bridge'' is now accepted as a technical masterpiece and has become a tourist attraction.

Location

The ''Hörn Bridge'' is wide and connects the city centre on the west bank of the ''Hörn'' with the ''Gaarden'' quarter on the east bank. The

pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, by wheelchair or with other mobility aids. Streets and roads often have a designated footpath for pedestrian traffic, called the '' sidewalk'' in North American English, the ''pavement'' in British En ...

bridge is especially important for passengers connecting between the Norway Ferry Terminal (''Norwegenkai'') and the

main railway station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

. Usually the bridge opens once every hour in order to allow small- and medium-sized ships to travel in and out of the ''Hörn''. The bridge offers one of the best panoramic views of the city of Kiel. It is also at the beginning and terminating point of a scenic route: the tourist route from Bremervörde to the Kieler Förde connects approximately 50 different ferries, bridges, ship locks, tidal barriers and maritime museums and its landmarks of the

Rendsburg Rendsburg (, also ''Rensborg'', , also ''Rensborg'') is a town on the Eider (river), River Eider and the Kiel Canal in the central part of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the capital of the ''Kreis'' (district) of Rendsburg-Eckernfoerde, Rends ...

and

Osten Osten (; ) is a municipality in the district of Cuxhaven, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Oste. Osten also means "East" in German. History Osten belonged to the Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen, established in 1180. In 1648 ...

transporter bridges.

References

External links

Hörnbrücke folding sequence photos

www.kiel.de
hours of operation Gerkan, Marg and Partners buildings Buildings and structures in Kiel Bridges completed in 1997 Bascule bridges Pedestrian bridges in Germany {{SchleswigHolstein-struct-stub