Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge (), commonly called Ponte JK (), is a

steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

and

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 ...

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 ...

across

Lake Paranoá __NOTOC__ Lake Paranoá (Portuguese: Lago Paranoá, , ) is an artificial lake in Brasília, the capital of Brazil. During construction of the city, the Paranoá River was dammed to form the lake. It is at an altitude of and has a circumference of ...

Brasília Brasília ( ; ) is the capital city, capital of Brazil and Federal District (Brazil), Federal District. Located in the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region, it was founded by President Juscelino ...

, Brazil. It connects the eastern shore of the lake – where

Lago Sul Lago Sul (; lit. South Lake) is an administrative region in the Federal District in Brazil. It is located on the south side of the eastern shore of Lake Paranoá, opposite of Brasília and Lago Norte. The Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek Internati ...

, Paranoá and

Brasília International Airport Brasília–President Juscelino Kubitschek International Airport () , also known as the Brasília International Airport, is the international airport serving Brasília, located in the Administrative regions of the Federal District (Brazil), admin ...

are located – to Brasília's city center, via the

Monumental Axis The Monumental Axis () is the central and main avenue in Brasília's city design. The avenue begins on the National Congress of Brazil building and is considered part of the DF-002 road. Its first section is known as "Ministries Esplanade" (), ...

. Opened to traffic on December 15, 2002, its distinctive silhouette quickly became a Brasília

landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern-day use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures ...

. The bridge is named after

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Juscelino Kubitschek Juscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira (; 12 September 1902 – 22 August 1976), also known by his initials JK, was a Brazilian politician who served as the 21st president of Brazil from 1956 to 1961. Kubitschek's government plan, dubbed "50 years i ...

, who served from 1956 to 1961 and is generally considered the main political figure to have supported the construction of the

planned city A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

of Brasília. It was designed by architect Alexandre Chan and structural engineer Mário Vila Verde.

Description

The bridge structure is long, wide and has two three-lane

carriageways A carriageway (British English) or roadway (North American English) is a width of road on which a vehicle is not restricted by any physical barriers or separation to move laterally. A carriageway generally consists of a number of traffic lane ...

in each direction and walkways fitted with guard-rails on either for cyclists and pedestrians, each wide, and three spans. The main span structure has four supporting pillars standing on the Lake Paranoá lakebed; and the deck weight is supported by three asymmetrical steel arches that crisscross diagonally. The decks are suspended by steel cables alternating at each side of the deck, interlacing in a twisted plane. The entire structure has a total length of , and was completed at a cost of US$56.8 million.

Awards

Alexandre Chan received the

Gustav Lindenthal Gustav Lindenthal (May 21, 1850 – July 31, 1935) was a civil engineer who designed the Queensboro Bridge, Queensboro and Hell Gate Bridge, Hell Gate bridges in New York City, among other bridges. Lindenthal's work was greatly affected by h ...

Medal for the bridge's project at the 2003 International Bridge Conference in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

. This medal is awarded "for a single, recent outstanding achievement showing harmony with the environment, aesthetic merit and successful community participation". The bridge was also awarded the 2003 Premio Abcem (''ABCEM Award'') for "Best Steel Work of the Year, Bridges and Highway Overpasses Category", granted by the Brazilian Metal Construction Association (''Associação Brasileira da Construção Metálica'', ABCEM). ABCEM 2003 Awards: Ponte Juscelino Kubistchek

References

External links

Associação Brasileira da Construção Metálica

Satellite picture on Google Maps

Interview with architect Alexandre Chan
{{Authority control Bridges in Brazil Through arch bridges Bridges completed in 2002 Buildings and structures in Brasília