Almonte Railway Bridge

Almonte Railway Bridge
Puente Rio Almonte
Hinojal, Extremadura, Spain
(427) feet high / (130) meters high
1,260 foot span / 384 meter span
2016

The Almonte Railway Bridge is one of two massive concrete arches on the high speed railway between Madrid and Extremadura, Spain. The double track high speed line crosses a 384 meter concrete main arch span that was constructed between 2011 and 2016. The large Alcántara reservoir below the span was created from a downstream dam.

The 996 meter long structure has a span configuration of 36 +6x45 +3x42 +3×42 +8×45 +36 meters. The arch rib has a width that varies between 6 - 19 meters while rib thickness varies between 4.80 - 6.90 meters.

A visit to the Almonte and Tajo arches would not be complete without a stop to see the famous Puente Alcántara. Located at the east end of the reservoir just below the dam, this classic Roman arch crossing is the most important stone bridge ever built in Spain. Completed in the year 106, the bridge measures 164 feet (50 mtrs) from the roadway to the normal water level of the Tagus river. This was enough to make it the highest bridge in the world, exceeding the Pont du Gard in France by just a few feet. For several hundred years it held the height record until Italy’s Ponte Delle Torri of Spoleto surpassed it. Alcántara is not only impressive for its height (which is a full 230 feet / 70 mtrs to the river bed) but for its size with 6 semicircular arches - the largest which spans 94 feet (29 mtrs). The word Alcántara is arabic for bridge.