ABSTRACT
A new bridge was built in Kalix, northern Sweden, to replace the existing prestressed concrete box-girder bridge that had been in service for more than 60 years. The old bridge had a total length of 283.6 m divided in five spans: 43.9 m, 47.0 m, 94.0 m, 47.0 m, and 43.9 m. It was constructed using the balanced cantilever method with segments with a length of around 3.0 m. The need for replacement arose from recommendations extracted from an assessment of the old bridge state and capacity. In addition to the construction of the new bridge, its replacement prompted the need to evaluate and define the demolition procedure of the existing structure. The demolition procedure had to be carefully studied to avoid damages to the new bridge and stability related issues but also to avoid falling debris in the Kalix River, which is part of Natura 2000 protected area. In this paper, the different aspects considered for the development of the demolition strategy are discussed. These aspects include the use of bed-rock anchored tendons, intermediate support fixing at specific locations, and proper evaluation of position of the demolition equipment supported by the bridge, among others.
