The military bridge over Gilão, a temporary structure that has been in use for 25 years, will finally be replaced by a permanent bridge.
The Câmara de Tavira has already launched the tender for the project for the execution of the new infrastructure and expects to have a new bridge in that prime area of the city by the end of 2017, spending "in the limit, 2,5 million euros", he revealed to Sul Informação the mayor of Tavira Jorge Botelho.
The work will be done with money from the Chamber of Tavira, with possible support from the European Union, although “it is not to be stopped, even if there are no community funds”.
“We still don't know if we will be able to access community funds. Not at first, but we are trying to fit the work into some rubric. Regardless, the work will certainly advance», assured Jorge Botelho.
The mayor added that the intervention "will already be signaled with a small amount in the Budget for 2016". Later, when there is already an execution project and it is possible to align a timetable for the construction of the bridge, “there will be a review of the budget”, in order to allocate the necessary funds.
This is a project that has been in demand for a long time by the population of Tavira, as the bridge is very degraded.
In addition to imposing restrictions on traffic, the state of the bridge raises safety issues, as its circulation deck is composed of wooden beams framed in metal structures, coated with tar. The many existing holes make it risky to pass in some places of the infrastructure.
The bridge, which connects the Public Garden of Tavira (Rua do Cais) to the confluence of the streets Jacques Pessoa and Borda d'Água Aguiar, was installed in 1990 by the army, using military engineering techniques, and despite not having been planned. to have a permanent character, it remains in service today.
The army's intervention was due to the urgent nature of the work, since, a year before the beginning of its construction, the nearby Roman bridge had been damaged by a flood and there were no alternatives for crossing the River Gilão at the time. that exist today.
Hence, there is a desire for the new bridge to start being built quickly. The process that will lead to the choice of the winning implementation project must end, "no later than February 2016", followed by a new public tender, this time for the award of the work.
For now, «the terms of reference are already on the electronic platform and we are accepting proposals», said Jorge Botelho.
The proposals must include not only the design of the new bridge, but also the planning of the dismantling process of the current infrastructure.
This will mean that, from the moment the work is awarded and until the new bridge is completed, it will no longer be possible to cross the Gilão by car in that area.
Those traveling on foot can continue using the Roman bridge, located a few meters away, in Praça da República.
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