Slowly but surely, the Krúsrak Bridge is disappearing under a large green-orange-white shed. In this shed, the bridge is getting a makeover. Parts of the wooden bridge from 2008 have started to rot and crack. To properly renovate the bridge, it needs to be completely dry, says project manager Martien Tolboom from our contractor Koninklijke Oosterhof Holman. In the insulated shed, we can heat it up significantly, allowing the bridge to dry out. And that with minimal energy consumption. The shed also prevents dust and noise disturbances.

Construction of the Shed

The construction of the shed takes about 7 weeks. In early June 2025, the foundation piles were driven, and in mid-June, the structure began. The shed is enormous: 21 m high and 800 m² in size, says Tolboom. That makes building time-consuming. And we also have to work around the bridge.

Inside the Shed

Once the shed is in place, work can begin. First, we will hang up fans and heat the temperature to 20 degrees. Then we will build scaffolding around the bridge so that we can access every piece of wood, says Tolboom. The next step: a thorough cleaning. A lot of mess will come off. We will catch that so it does not end up in the environment.

Once all this work is done, it will be quiet in the shed for 2 months. Then it will be heated to 35 - 40 degrees with heaters. Fans and dryers will control the humidity. This way, the bridge will dry thoroughly. We expect to extract about 20,000 liters of water from the bridge, says Tolboom. After that, the damaged wood can be replaced and the bridge coated. This way, it can last for many more years. And what happens to the shed once the bridge is finished? The shed is dismantlable, so hopefully we can make a new owner happy with it.