Overview
- The Dorkwerd bascule bridge came down skewed after a routine opening late Monday evening and has been closed to all road traffic because it will not fully close.
- After several attempts to fix the alignment, Rijkswaterstaat set the bridge fully open so ships can pass while engineers continue repair work on site.
- Crews and a contractor are rebalancing the bridge by repeatedly moving the span and adjusting counterweights, with planned work windows that will briefly restrict shipping during the day.
- Road users are being detoured via the Aduard bridge, which is signposted for cars, cyclists and pedestrians but may become unavailable when Aduard closes for cable replacement from 29 June to 5 July.
- The incident is under formal investigation and follows cable fractures found in December and new steel cables fitted in April, a recent history that frames concern about the bridge’s vulnerability.