La Vicaria Arch Bridge 1.86

La Vicaria Bridge is a through arch bridge that spans the Segura River, where it meets La Fuensanta Reservoir near Yeste, in the province of Albacete, Spain. It forms part of a future road that will join Yeste with Letur and the neighbouring area to the east. The bridge has 2 vehicle lanes and 2 sidewalks.IntroductionLa Fuensanta Reservoir and the River Segura divide the municipal district of Yeste into two parts. This village is the main town of an isolated and mountainous region in the southern part of the province of Albacete. The bridge provides direct access to the village from the east (previously it had only been accessible from the north) and, as a result of avoiding travelling around the large reservoir, reduces the journey time by 50 minutes.The owner of the bridge, the Confederación Hidrográfica del Segura (Segura Water Authority, that includes irrigation districts), decided to construct the bridge in order to resolve the old transportation problems of the Yeste population and to act as a landmark. As a result they employed Ferrovial-Agromán as the builder and final designer. Ferrovial-Agromán gathered, and expanded on, previous ideas in order to find a complete solution that included an innovative construction process.DescriptionThe structure is a 168 m through arch bridge with approaching spans, taking advantage of the natural valley’s morphology and the width of the reservoir at this point. The foundations of the arches rest on the limestone rock on both hillsides at the reservoir’s high water level.