| Bridge Name: | Vasco da Gama Bridge |
| Official Name: | Ponte Vasco da Gama |
| Carries: | Six road lanes of |
| Crosses: | Tagus River |
| Coordinates: | 38.762°N -9.043°W |
| Owner: | Portuguese Republic |
| Maint: | Lusoponte (1994–2030)[1] [2] |
| Design: | Cable-stayed, viaducts |
| Architect: | Michel Virlogeux, Alain Montois, Charles Lavigne and [3] |
| Designer: | Armando Rito |
| Mainspan: | 420m (1,380feet) |
| Length: | 12.345km (07.671miles)[4] |
| Width: | 30m (100feet) |
| Height: | 148m (486feet) (pylon)[5] |
| Begin: | February 1995 |
| Complete: | March 1998 |
The Vasco da Gama Bridge (Portuguese: Ponte Vasco da Gama) is a cable-stayed bridge flanked by viaducts that spans the Tagus River in Parque das Nações in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal.
It is the second longest bridge in Europe, after the Crimean Bridge,[6] and the longest one in the European Union. It was built to alleviate the congestion on Lisbon's 25 de Abril Bridge, and eliminate the need for traffic between the country's northern and southern regions to pass through the capital city.[7]
Construction began in February 1995; the bridge was opened to traffic on 29 March 1998, just in time for Expo 98, the World's Fair that celebrated the 500th anniversary of the discovery by Vasco da Gama of the sea route from Europe to India.
Along with the 25 de Abril Bridge, the Vasco da Gama is one of two bridges that span the Tagus River in Lisbon.
The bridge carries six road lanes, with a speed limit of 120-0NaN-0, the same as that on motorways, except on one section which is limited to 100-1NaN-1. On windy, rainy, and foggy days, the speed limit is reduced to 90-0NaN-0. The number of road lanes will be enlarged to eight when traffic reaches a daily average of 52,000.
The $1.1 billion project was split into four parts, each built by a different company, and supervised by an independent consortium. There were up to 3,300 workers simultaneously on the project, which took 18 months of preparation and 18 months of construction. The financing is via a build-operate-transfer system by Lusoponte, a private consortium that receives the first 40 years of tolls for both Lisbon bridges. Lusoponte's capital is 50.4% from Portuguese companies, 24.8% from French, and 24.8% from British.
The bridge has a life expectancy of 120 years, having been designed to withstand wind speeds of 250-0NaN-0 and hold up to an earthquake 4.5 times greater than the standards of building resistance in Lisbon.[8] The deepest foundation piles, up to 2.21NaN1 in diameter, were driven down to 950NaN0 under mean sea level. Environmental pressure throughout the project resulted in the left-bank viaducts being extended inland to preserve the marshes underneath, as well as the lamp posts throughout the bridge being tilted inwards so as not to cast light on the river below.
Northbound traffic (to Lisbon) is charged a toll while travelling southbound is free. Tolls are collected through a toll plaza located on the south bank of Tagus, near Montijo. As of 2024, bridge tolls range from €3.20 (passenger cars) to €13.55 (trucks).[9]