Halen Bridge

About the building

The Halen Bridge crosses the Aare at a height of 38 metres. It links the Neufeld on Bern city territory with Herrenschwanden in the municipality of Kirchlindach, and lies half in each municipality. The Bern part is a cultural property of national significance.

Since the 1840s the municipalities north of Bern had been calling for a new crossing of the Aare. In 1908 a private initiative committee launched a competition, which was won by the Zurich firm Müller, Zeerleder and Gobat with a design by the engineer Jakob Bolliger. The canton adopted the project, had it revised and began building in October 1911. The bridge opened on 13 September 1913. At the time it was the concrete bridge with the longest span in Switzerland.

To the south a parabolic main arch, growing slimmer towards the top, spans the river. To the north follow four narrower oval arches; there the roadway bends almost imperceptibly to the west, because the axis was shifted shortly before construction began. The piers taper and are pierced by arched openings, and the roadway rests on slender supports. Everywhere one sees the effort to keep weight and thrust low. The length is given as 234 metres, and as 238 metres in the federal inventory of historic routes.

In 1968–1970 the roadway was widened for a second footpath, and the concrete parapets gave way to a steel railing. In 1992/93 there followed a complete renewal: the main arch and the piers were kept and repaired, while the deck slab, the side arches and the supports were rebuilt. Since then the parapet has again been made of concrete, modelled on the original. On 29 October 1993 the bridge was reopened to traffic.

Stop at the southern end of the bridge: two metal plaques on the parapets commemorate its construction and its renewal. Above the piers of the main arch, small viewing balconies project, from which you look down to the Aare.

Researched and summarised by Bärn Kit. Sources: Bauinventar der Stadt Bern: Halenbrücke · IVS – Inventar historischer Verkehrswege der Schweiz: BE 1913.0.1 Halenbrücke · Wikipedia (de): Halenbrücke · Wikipedia (de): Liste der Kulturgüter in Bern/Länggasse-Felsenau · Wikidata: Q117029039