Every year tens of thousands of tourists come to Norway. They are attracted not only by the harsh northern nature, but also by stunning monuments of modern engineering and architecture. Especially popular place considered a road Atlanterhavsveien, connecting the mainland with the island of Averøy. This beautiful place are crossed by 8 bridges, each of which, at a certain angle, resembles curved slides that “break off” right in the sky.
The idea of connecting the island with the main part of Norway appeared at the beginning of the 20th century, but then engineers wanted to see railway. For various reasons, the project was never implemented. The country's authorities returned to the issue of highway construction in 1983. During the 6 years of construction, the road was exposed to hurricane storms 12 times.
Seven bridges have been built along the entire 8.27 km Atlantic Road (Atlanterhavsveien) route. Most high bridge entitled Storseisundet(23 meters) at a certain angle resembles a curved hill with a cliff. For this it was nicknamed the “Drunk” Bridge.
Construction costs amounted to NOK 122 million. However, the project became so popular that it recouped its cost in just a year. The Atlantic Ocean Road was recognized as the "Best Tourist Road in the Country".
Architect George K. S. Rothe, in turn, developed a non-standard Eressunlink project, which includes an 8 km long bridge, an underground tunnel (4 km) and artificial island. This one links the Danish capital Copenhagen with the Swedish city of Malmo.
The eight-kilometer Atlanterhavsveien (The Atlantic Road), connecting the islands of southwestern Norway, is a popular a tourist route. A road with stunning views of the fjords and Mountain peaks, as if jumping from one island to another, communicating with them using seven bridges.
The tallest and longest of them, the Storseisundet Bridge, from a distance looks like a highway going nowhere. Its length is 260 meters and its height reaches 23 meters. Cars moving along a surprisingly curved bridge seem to be diving into the waters from a springboard. North Sea. And in stormy weather, when waves cover cars going beyond the horizon, a trip across the bridge will become an ominous, but, however, safe attraction. This optical illusion effect, which is achieved thanks to the unusual design of the structure, gave the Atlanterhavsveien route a different name: locals call it the “drunk road”.
Construction of the Atlanterhavsveien route lasted about six years; it was opened on July 7, 1989.
Along Atlanterhavsveien there are four special panoramic areas where you can stop for a small picnic. Some of them are equipped with platforms for anglers.
Storms sweeping the coast Atlantic Ocean in the autumn months, attract tourists who want to see the bad weather with their own eyes. Before the road opened in 1989, workers who built Atlanterhavsveien over six years witnessed 12 severe hurricanes and storms.
How to get there
Along the scenic Norwegian coastline, the Atlanterhavsveien (The Atlantic Road), on which the Storseisundet bridge is located, is part of the national road Rv 64. It connects the cities of Molde and Kristiansund - the most populous centers of the Møre og Romsdal governorate, located in the fjord region. The road starts 30 kilometers southwest of Kristiansund and ends 47 kilometers from Molde.
If you are traveling by car from the north (for example, from Trondheim) and starting from Kristiansund, head towards the Atlantic Tunnel, which connects the city with the island of Averøya. From the center of Kristiansund, take Rv 70 until you reach the roundabout, from where you take the Rv 64; follow signs for Molde. The length of the tunnel is about five kilometers; a “barrier fee” is charged for traveling through it.
A bus service connects the cities of Molde and Kristiansund; the path passes along the Atlanterhavsveien highway, surrounded by colorful landscapes of northern nature.
Norwegian tourist routes cruise company Hurtigruten are planned in such a way that, having disembarked, for example in Kristiansund, you can tour the Atlanterhavsveien by car or bus, and then board again in Molde.
Location
The Storseisundet Bridge, part of the scenic Atlanterhavsveien (The Atlantic Road), connects the mainland and the island of Avereya in Møre og Romsdal, in the west. The exact coordinates of the bridge: 63°01"00"N 7°21"11"E.
Storsesundet Bridge, located in Norway, is considered one of the most amazing and phenomenal bridges in the world. Just by looking at it, you get the impression that it leads in an unknown direction, and for an avid tourist it will turn out to be an incredibly intriguing and bewitching place. And indeed, if you look at the bridge from the outside, it seems that there, on the other side, there is no continuation, but there is a cliff, the unknown... This is precisely where its intrigue, charm, extraordinaryness lie, and this, in turn, is extremely captivating and arouses interest to the point of insanity.
The Storsesundet Bridge, also known as the “bridge to nowhere,” was built in 1989. Its length is 260 m. Due to its unusual bend, locals nicknamed it “drunk”. But its strength and durability leave no doubt. The builders spared neither effort nor time in constructing such a striking and complex structure. He is considered one of the most long bridges Atlantic road, the purpose of which was to connect the island of Averoy with the mainland.
Initially, it was planned to construct an ordinary bridge, but the privilege is always innovative and unusual ideas, which led the architects to the idea of creating a bridge that resembles a roller coaster in its appearance. The illusory cliff leading into the unknown actually goes 23 m down. This is a kind of descent that takes your breath away just from looking at it, and your soul is filled with indescribable emotions.
Surely all lovers of the feeling of drive, incredible adrenaline and extreme sports will like this “abyss”. Indeed, in stormy weather or a strong storm, when raging waves cover passing cars, as if secretly trying to interfere with moving traffic and block the path, the trip can really seem like a real water attraction.
If you happen to witness such an extravagant and chilling spectacle, you can feel incredible anxiety, insane trepidation and even panic fear for the lives of those who find themselves there, in the so-called “trap.” But all these burning and terrifying emotions are absolutely groundless, because travel across this bridge is completely safe and reliable.
Today, the Storsesundet Bridge is a popular place among tourists, where you can thoroughly enjoy the stunning panoramas of Norwegian landscapes and enjoy the beauty that opens up to your eyes. beautiful mountains and taste the bliss of the occasional raging surface of water. This is a century-old building that attracts almost everyone who sets foot on Norwegian soil and enchants with its mystery, inexplicable magical appeal and partially transmitted energy.
If you're in Norway and want to drive the 1,088 kilometers from the southern port of Kristiansand to Trondheim in the north of the country, be prepared to spend at least 21 hours driving for this route. Travel occurs at an average speed of 50 km/h, so you have an excellent chance to explore the beauty of Norway and the geological features of its relief. The route, along the E39 highway, crosses seven magnificent but completely inconvenient fjords (an inland sea bay with rocky shores), which means that you will have to make seven ferry trips.
But now a large-scale infrastructure project is already being developed, the cost of which will be at least $25 billion. His goal is to reduce travel time along the route described above to 10.5 hours by building permanent bridges by 2035 that will rid the region of ferries. Since many of the sea bays are very wide and deep (some reach a depth of 1.6 km), an ordinary classic bridge will not be possible to build. Thus, Norway is seriously developing a project for an underwater floating bridge, the passage pipe of which will be suspended from large pontoons floating on the surface of the water.
Underwater tunnels could rid Norway of ferries
Arianna Minoretti, Senior Control Engineer public roads country, says that such a project will be unique and the only one in the history of architecture, and that the design of the first section of the underwater floating bridge is almost completed. It will connect both banks of the Sognefjord fjord, which is 1,310 meters deep and 1,000 meters wide. Its structure will consist of two curved concrete pipes, one for each direction of the road, which will hang underwater at a depth of 20 to 30 meters below the surface. 
Pontoons on the surface will support the pipes and ensure their stability. In some areas, the entire structure may also be anchored to underwater rocks to provide additional stability. Arianna Minoretti assures that crossing such a bridge by car will feel no different from crossing any other
The project to build the first underwater bridges will cost $25 billion and will be completed by 2035
Norway is famous for its fjords. These natural sea bays are breathtakingly beautiful; many tourists come to Norway mainly to look at this natural wonder. But for local residents countries such beauties cause more headaches than joy. After all, it is impossible to cross the rocky bays without the help of a ferry by car. But building bridges in such places is simply unprofitable. Some fjords are too wide and deep and, combined with difficult natural terrain, are also difficult weather conditions standard suspension bridge it is simply impossible to deliver.
The Norwegian government planned an ambitious project and found considerable investment for it. The point of the idea is to build not, but underwater bridges-tunnels, which will be stretched across a number of the country's fjords.
These "submerged floating bridges" have much in common with tunnels, but they have their own design nuances. The great depth of some of Norway's fjords is forcing the Scandinavian country to take a different approach, not building tunnels, but suspending "bridges" on pontoons at a depth of 30 meters under water. Where possible, floating tunnels will be secured with cables to provide greater structural stability. Two pipes, through which car traffic flows each in its own direction, form a single assembly.
The approval of a project and the allocation of funds for its implementation by the government does not mean that there are no problems in its implementation. Since the Norwegian suspension underwater bridge system is the first of its kind, this means that the design team will face complex engineering tests that will still need to be passed before the project can be cleared for implementation. It is not yet clear how the pontoons will behave in bad weather, how the floating one will fight tidal movements and currents. Apparently engineers need to solve a lot of problems.
There is no information yet on how many such floating tunnels are planned to be made. The government has allocated $25 billion for the project, its completion date will be 2035.
