Dom Luís I Bridge

The span

The 172 metre span was the longest of its type in the world

Dom Luís I Bridge is a double-deck metal arch bridge that spans the river Douro between Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia. At its construction, its 172 metre span was the longest of its type in the world.

172metres, the span of the arch

Eiffel

Gustave Eiffel's single-deck plan of 1879 was rejected

In 1879 Gustave Eiffel presented a project for a new bridge over the Douro with a high single deck. It was rejected because the growth of the urban population required a rethink of a single-deck platform.

The designer

Théophile Seyrig, Eiffel's former partner, designed the bridge

The work was awarded in 1881 to the Belgian Société de Willebroek. Théophile Seyrig, the former partner of Gustave Eiffel, was the author of the project. He had also designed the Maria Pia bridge, hence the resemblance.

1886

The upper deck opened the day after the arch was finished in 1886

On 30 October 1886 construction of the main arch and upper deck was concluded, and the bridge was inaugurated the very next day. The lower deck was inaugurated the following year.

Today

Since 2003 the upper deck has carried the metro and pedestrians

On 27 June 2003 the upper deck was closed to motor traffic to adapt it for the metro. Today the upper level is used by pedestrians and line D of the Porto Metro, and the lower level by buses, taxis, cyclists and pedestrians.