Drilled and driven piles - Tangenvika Bridge in Norway-Paper

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Tangenvika Bridge is a 1,022 m prestressed concrete railway bridge under construction across Lake Mjøsa, Norway. Part of a rail upgrade between Oslo and Hamar, it is planned to open in 2027 and will become Norway’s longest railway bridge.<br /><br />The foundation design responds to water depths of up to 52 m and challenging ground conditions, including sensitive silts, sands, dense moraine and bedrock. It combines direct foundations on rock, steel core piles, drilled piles and driven piles. Near shore, where sensitive soils and underwater-landslide risks are concerns, 78 drilled, 1,016 mm-diameter piles were installed using reverse circulation and a fully integrated ring-bit system. Each pile was socketed 2 m into bedrock. In deeper lake areas, 60 driven, 1,430 mm-diameter piles were installed with closed-ended tips and hydraulic hammers.<br /><br />Because the water was too deep for jack-up barges, all piling was carried out from floating container pontoons. Piles were welded on land in a controlled facility to meet strict quality requirements, then transported to the work locations. The largest piles were installed as single pieces up to 85 m long and 102 tonnes. Their transfer and lifting into position required a 400-tonne crane, transfer pontoons and a tugboat.<br /><br />The project also used low-disturbance drilling methods to limit impacts on surrounding soils. Its foundation carbon footprint was estimated at 29,065.5 tonnes of CO₂, with most emissions attributed to Scope 3.<br /><br />The project demonstrates how multiple foundation systems and specialized marine logistics can address demanding geotechnical and environmental conditions while delivering long-term support for major rail infrastructure.

Keywords

Tangenvika Bridge

Lake Mjøsa

railway bridge

prestressed concrete

foundation design

drilled piles

driven piles

marine logistics

geotechnical conditions

carbon footprint