The Storstrøm Bridge

Storstrømsbroen set fra jernbanedæmningen på Masnedø.

Facts

Europe's longest bridge

By Steffen Elmer Jørgensen, Arkivar, seniorforsker, Ph.D. (18 stories)

The Storstrøm Bridge was the result of the Danish State Railways' mission to get more traffic across the Baltic Sea via the Gedser-Warnemünde ferry route. The Masnedø-Falster ferry service was a bottleneck until a construction act was passed in 1931. Together with a new Masnedsund Bridge, the Storstrøm Bridge was planned and constructed between 1932 and 1937. The Danish State Railways' bridges division, led by Professor Anker Engelund, was in charge of the project. The Danish engineering firm of Christiani & Nielsen supplied the bridge piers and damming works. In the interests of the balance of trade, the British steel company, Dorman, Long & Co. was invited to supply the steel structure.

Public place

Selected entry

Bridge for jobs

Story written by Steffen Elmer Jørgensen

Time / Periode 1937

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The Storstrøm Bridge was an old dream for the Danish State Railways who wanted a rapid link via the Gedser-Warnemünde ferry to the rest of Europe. In the 1930s, there was active lobbying in Danish industrial circles for a direct line from Germany up into Scandinavia. In times of crisis, a large-scale bridge construction project created many jobs. But the construction act also provided for other factors. The people of Jutland were compensated with a combined bridge across Odde Sound. In deference to the vital British export market, a British steel company was contracted to supply the steel superstructure. But the Minister for Transport was also mindful to appeal to the Danish national pride: with a length of 3,211 metres, it was to be Europe's longest bridge and Denmark was to be the European champion in bridge building.