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Montolivet Bridge [DRAFT not to be published]

The Montolivet Bridge (Valencian: Pont de Montolivet, Spanish: Puente de Monteolivete) is a road bridge in the southeast part of the city of Valencia that crosses the dry Túria riverbed and the western half of the City of Arts and Sciences. To the north, the bridge ends at the Roundabout of Europe, one of the largest in the city, while to the south it intersects the Saler motorway.

It is a unique bridge in the city because it consists of two clearly different bridge segments: the older straight bridge, which crosses only the northern half of the current riverbed, and the newer curved bridge, which continues it to the southern shore. It was upon the construction of the City of Arts and Sciences that the south bridge segment was built. The two-segment bridge was inaugurated in 2007.

Design features
Both bridge segments consist of two separate roadways, each with four lanes as well as a wide sidewalk for bicycles and pedestrians. The total width of the dual roadways including the gap is about 41 m for both bridge segments.

There are many differences between the two bridge segments. The older bridge segment, to the north, designed by Fernández Ordóñez (1933-2000) with straight dual roadways, was built in the 1980s and was also called the Maristas Brothers bridge. Each roadway is supported by a series of dual vertical rectangular columns, in between which are smooth haunches in gray concrete with the corners and other trim details painted distinctively in brown. In 2014, the railings of this older north segment was replaced.

As for the other bridge, to the south, it is in pure Calatravian style, slightly arched and supported on four slender pillars that join at the base, inside an artificial lake. It leaves to the east the Museum of Sciences Prince Felipe and the Hemisfèric and to the west the palace of Arts Queen Sofia and marks with the Umbracle. It is, therefore, an important element of the whole of the City of Arts and Sciences, and is ascribed to its stylistic patterns: made of white and shiny concrete, it does not contain any straight line but is composed of a series of curves. which give it an organic or animal look.

The two bridge segments are joined at the staircase abutment, which has stairs on each side leading down to the riverbed. There is also a limestone column of Roman type of 5.1 m high on the median of the abutment. It is a gift from the architect Calatrava to the city of Valencia, on the occasion of the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the city, marking the spot where he conducted Mass on 9 July 2006.