With the traffic agreement of 21 March 2013, the parties to the settlement decided to initiate the work of constructing a new combined road and railway bridge with cycle track and footpath across Storstrømmen between Vordingborg and Orehoved.
The current Storstrøm Bridge from 1937 will not be able to withstand the increased traffic volumes primarily on the railway crossing the bridge when the Fehmarn Belt link to Germany opens.
In addition, the bridge is in poor condition, which will require substantial maintenance work in the future if it was to remain.
The current Storstrøm Bridge will be demolished when the new bridge has been constructed.
Visualization of the new bridge seen from Orehoved.
Background
In the autumn of 2011, it became clear that the current Storstrøm Bridge would not be able to withstand the increased goods traffic by rail when the Fehmarn Belt link opens. In a traffic agreement from November 2011, Banedanmark was therefore requested to carry out a feasibility study as a basis for a decision on the future of the bridge.
The feasibility study analysed how the road and railway traffic may be maintained in the socioeconomically most cost-effective way through a total of five possible scenarios - including a renovation of the existing Storstrøm Bridge.
The study found that due to the age and limited capacity of the bridge a new Storstrøm Bridge would be the best solution, which was also recommended to the Minister for Transport. In addition, it was a wish that the cycle and pedestrian traffic across the bridge should be maintained as this plays a major role locally.
The new bridge has a single narrow pier which supports the footpath and cycle track (left), carriageway (centre) and railway (right).Future-proof The Storstrøm Bri
dge is of great regional importance and is also an important part of the railway corridor between Copenhagen and Germany. In the coming years, this railway corridor will be reinforced significantly with the establishment of the new railway Copenhagen-Ringsted through Køge and the coming construction of the Fehmarn Belt link with associated on-shore railway.
The objective of the decision in March 2013 to construct a new combined road and double-track railway bridge across Storstrømmen is to ensure the future capacity of this central railway corridor to Europe.
A new combined road and railway bridge will also ensure local and regional mobility, and it is therefore important to maintain the road link across Storstrømmen in the interest of the local traffic between Falster and Southern Zealand.
An early proposal for a ne
w Storstrøm Bridge had two load-bearing piers.