The extremely monstrous bridge of the Netherlands: Rain is to be ... flooded

A bridge is really strange - instead of higher than the water surface, some sections will sink when it rains. And what is its purpose?

The Netherlands is known to be a country lower than sea level. The lowest area is below sea level to 6.74m, located in a small town in the city of Rotterdam.

The Netherlands is a country located lower than sea level.

The country itself, The Netherlands, also means " lowland". In addition, statistics show that two-thirds of this country is located in flood-prone areas, while population density belongs to the most crowded group.

So was the city of Nijmege on the banks of the Waal, the inhabitants of this low-lying area always facing the risk of being submerged for centuries. In response to this risk, the Dutch have built a modern dyke system , to strictly control some of the flood prone areas in the city.

However, according to the latest reports, this dike system is showing signs of cracking at many points, causing the entire infrastructure of the city to face the risk of flooding.

Zalige Bridge crosses the Waal River, which runs along the 2000-year-old city of Nijmegen.

Instead of just trying to fight back against natural disasters, the engineers here designed a bridge that could adapt and change at sea level in Nijmegen. The bridge is named Zalige created by the two designers Next Architects and H + N + S Landscape Architects of the Netherlands.

It is special in that, some bridges are designed by "intentionally" engineers so that when it rains it will be engulfed by water.

In this case, instead of being able to take a leisurely stroll on the bridge as usual, they would have to "brainstorm" on the high stone platforms arranged in the river to overcome the flooding to the the other side.

Demand is adaptable and changes with sea level.

According to Next Architects, they designed the bridge to provide a realistic experience for the prospect of a flooded city.

"When you stand on the highest area and look down, the bridge is like the great strength of the water, but more importantly, it creates the opportunity for people to admire and experience the river view. changed by human hands " , the design team said.

Some parts of the bridge, when it rains, will be engulfed by water.

This project is part of the Netherlands Ministry of Construction and Environment's campaign to encourage construction works to adapt to natural disasters and floods.

The bridge was completed in 2016 and in January 2018 the Zalige Bridge successfully overcame the challenge of efficiency when the Waal River level rose to its highest level in the last 15 years.