Pontoon Bridge: On-Site Inspection On The Bank Of The Danube

"This is the place of the former Kossuth Bridge. Our workers’ self-sacrificing work built it in 8 months to temporarily replace the Danube bridges that had been destroyed by Fascism. It was opened for traffic on January 18, 1946, on the first anniversary of the explosion of the last bridge in Budapest by the fascists. After fulfilling its noble task, it was dismantled in 1960" – says the plaque on the stone pillar at the stairs leading to the rakpart (quay) right next to the Parliament.

Not far from this place, at the Holocaust memorial on the rakpart an on-site inspection was held on Tuesday by the experts of the Ministry of Defence and the Municipality of Budapest with the aim of clarifying the practical issues related to the possible construction of a pontoon bridge during the renovation of Margit-híd.

As it is known, Deputy Major Miklós Hagyó contacted Minister of Defence Dr. Imre Szekeres to find out if it is possible to help the car traffic in Budapest with a temporary military pontoon bridge during the renovation of Margit-híd.

At the inspection on the bank of the Danube Dr. Péter Szeredi, Head of the Cabinet Office of the Ministry of Defence told the journalists that after the Municipality of Budapest contacted them the defence minister ordered an on-site inspection to examine the possibility of the possible construction of the military pontoon bridge.

Mr László Becker, Chief Engineer of the Municipality added: the idea was raised by the deputy mayor two weeks ago, at the moment they are examining the theoretical options for the pontoon bridge. First they have to see the technical, transportation, and economic questions clearly, only then can they tell if it is worth constructing the bridge, and if it is, then how long will it be a temporary crossing place on the Danube.

Colonel József Nyers, the Commander of the HDF 37th ’Ferenc Rákóczi II’ Engineering Battalion told the attendees about what the Hungarian Defence Forces can offer. He said that at the HDF they use the so-called PMP ribbon bridge, which consists of sets, that is boats, pontoon blocks, and transport vehicles and vessels. With one set the Szentes troops can build 227 meters of pontoon and the battalion has three sets at the moment.

The maximum load of the bridge is 65 tons, its total width is 8 meters, and the width of the traffic lane is 6 m 51 cm. The length of the bridge depends on the water level of the river. Pontoon bridges are used primarily for military purposes, but of course, if certain safety measures are taken it can be used for road transport purposes as well. One of the most important measures is guaranteeing safe entry and exit to and from the bridge. This is an interesting point since the quays in the capital are quite steep, therefore ramps have to be built. In military use, pontoon bridges are designed for one-way traffic, with a maximum capacity of 600-800 passing vehicles per hour. The regulations also stipulate that the maximum speed of vehicles on the bridge is 30 km/h, and a minimum distance of 20-30 meters must be kept between two vehicles – said Col. József Nyers, adding: naturally, the engineering battalion is capable of executing this task, and once the decision is made the bridge will be completed ’in a short while’ between the two banks of the river.

The commander also told us that tin 2003, the Szentes corps have already constructed a bridge over the Danube. Back then the so-called Europe Bridge was open for several days for pedestrians only on the occasion of our national holiday, March 15. Should they receive an order to construct a new bridge, they could use the experiences of the former one.

In response to the questions of the journalists Col. Nyers said that in order to provide safe operations in several shifts, at least 480 soldiers have to be present at the bridge. In addition to this, the fact that the bridge does not have security equipment that would make it suitable for night traffic can also be problematic, therefore a proper solution has to be found for this question as well. Speaking about the costs the battalion commander emphasized: based on their calculations the operations of the bridge would cost 20 million forints a day, plus the cost of the necessary maintenance works.

The Head of the Cabinet Office, Dr. Péter Szeredi added: since the Danube is an international water-way a special method has to be elaborated to guarantee the traffic, in compliance with international agreements. In other words, the pontoon bridge should be opened and closed regularly. These openings would be necessary not only because of the boat traffic but also to let the accumulating debris to pass through.

Chief engineer László Becker told honvedelem.hu: until the technical consultations are not finished it cannot be said if there will be a pontoon bridge on the Danube. They have to examine every possible solution, for the temporary replacement of Margit-híd is very important. On average, 1,500-2,000 vehicles per hour are going through the passing point over the Danube.