Oschütztal Viaduct

Weida is a small town 12 km. south of Gera in Thuringia where one of the most prominent features of the landscape is the Oschütztal Viaduct, one of the most innovative railway bridges in Germany. The viaduct was built in 1884 to enable trains on the line from Mehlthueur to Weida-Alststadt, opened in 1883, to cross into the town of Weida itself. The unique feature of the 185 m. long wrought iron latticework structure was its oscillating piers, designed to offset the swaying motions caused by trains going across. It was designed by the architect Claus Köpcke (1831-1911) and the engineer Hans Manfred Krüger. Subsequently the bridge was strengthened to carry heavier locomotives. It was crossed by a passenger train for the last time in 1982 after it was by-passed by a short section of new track built alongside a new main road. The viaduct has been registered for many years as a technical monument.