Bill Brown first designed a bridge over the Dardanelles at Çanakkale nearly 30 years ago (B2 illustration shown above) and he would be overjoyed that his invention of the twin-box girder deck design would become a reality on the new bridge.

Bill and his firm Brown Beech were formally commissioned to prepare designs for The Dardanelles Bridge project following the success of the Second Bosphorus Bridge (Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge) and the expansion of the major road system. KGM recognised the need for bridges over the Dardanelles Strait and the Izmit Bay to improve communication and connect communities across Turkey.

In the early 1990s Bill and his team of consulting engineers and bridge designers at B2 were developing innovative designs with aerodynamic-box deck sections that continued the work that began with his Severn Bridge and Bosphorus Bridge designs. His introduction of the world’s-first concept of the twin-box deck (and multi-box) was the key.

The bridge is 10km south of the town of Gallipoli in north west Turkey. Not only is it the longest central-span suspension bridge in the world at 2,023m, it also has the highest towers for a suspension bridge at 334m. The aerodynamic twin-box girder deck is 45m wide.

The towers have been built on piers in the Dardanelles Strait which is approximately four kilometres wide at this point. The cable spinning was by the controlled-tension method and the deck was erected by lifting individual sections up from a barge on the waterway.

The bridge forms part of an 88km three-lane motorway project that connects to a route west of the Sea of Marmara, opening up communications and connecting communities in this part of Turkey and easing the traffic load on Istanbul.

These images show the 3D renders of the bridge and construction videos courtesy of Çanakkale Motorway Bridge Construction Investment Management Inc. (Çanakkale Otoyol ve Köprüsü İnşaat Yatırım ve İşletme A.Ş) and ©ÇOK AŞ