Giurgiu-Rousse Friendship Bridge

Infobox Bridge

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bridge_name=Giurgiu-Rousse Friendship Bridge
official_name=
locale=between Giurgiu, Romania and Rousse, Bulgaria, at river kilometre 488.70
carries=two lanes of road and railway traffic, pedestrians
crosses=Danube
open=20 June 1954
below=30 m
design=truss bridge
length=2,800 m
width=
coordinates=coord|43|53|22|N|26|0|19|E|type:landmark_region:BG/ROThe Giurgiu-Rousse Friendship Bridge ( _bg. Мост на дружбата, "Most na druzhbata" or more commonly Дунав мост, "Dunav most"; _ro. Podul prieteniei) is a steel truss bridge over the Danube River connecting the Bulgarian bank to the south with the Romanian bank to the north and the cities of Rousse (Ruse) and Giurgiu respectively.

Opened on 20 June 1954 and designed by Georgi Ovcharov (according to other sources: V. Andreev), the bridge is 2.80 km long and is the only bridge over the Danube in the section shared by Bulgaria and Romania as of 2008, with the other traffic being served by ferries. It has two decks, one for road (two lanes) and one for railway traffic, as well as sidewalks for pedestrians, and was constructed in two and a half years with the aid of the Soviet Union.

The Giurgiu-Rousse Friendship Bridge also has border control stations due to it serving as a border crossing between the two countries. Since 1 January 2007 there is no more customs control and the passport/identity card control is done "on one desk" by Bulgarian or Romanian border police, because it is an internal border for the European Union. Border control will be completely removed when Bulgaria and Romania implement the Schengen Agreement which is expected to happen in 2009.

There are a pair of rectangular towers supported by pillars on both ends.

ee also

*Calafat-Vidin Bridge, under construction

External links

*
* " [http://www.bookcase.com/~claudia/mt/archives/000087.html Halfway down the Danube] ", a short story about crossing the bridge

Crossings navbox
structure = Bridges
place = Danube
bridge = Giurgiu-Rousse Friendship Bridge
upstream = Calafat-Vidin Bridge
downstream = Cernavoda Bridge