Masses of pigeon droppings hinder bridge inspection – salzburg.ORF.at
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The Salzburg city administration now has to clear the state bridge in the center of centimeter-thick pigeon droppings before it can be structurally inspected and checked. Workers from the sheltered workshops and the city’s road and bridge office clean the structure thoroughly.
Around seven million vehicles pass the Salzburg State Bridge every year.
With steam jets against the dirt
For cleaning, the work teams need a single respiratory and body protection as well as heavy equipment, explains Markus Holzleitner from the city’s bridge office: “The first step is to remove the boarding between the girders. Then steam jets are used to remove the pigeon droppings and the remaining dirt. It is already relatively strong. We have to do this work every six years. “
Heavy rust would be fatal
Rust protection and steel girders are now also being examined for possible damage that could result from dying excrement and its degree of acidity, says the expert: “We also look at what’s under the faeces. If it had been massive, it would be devastating with such a bridge. “
Whether a wooden formwork will be installed between the steel girders, when and when the technicians will first decide. In any case, protection against pigeons is hardly practicable, says Holzleitner: “The network is a good option, but it would be very difficult to inspect the bridge.” Cleaning the state bridge alone costs 20,000 euros before the complex inspection and security check can even begin .