Across the Neckar River looms the Neckartalviadukt Untertürkheim a colossal bridge system. It’s more than just a way to cross the water. It’s a testament to engineering ambition and a window into Stuttgart’s past.
The Neckartalviadukt Untertürkheim isn’t a single bridge. It’s a 1400-meter-long combination of several bridges. This impressive structure carries the B 14 federal highway through the Neckar valley. Its construction connects the Rems valley to the Neckar valley. This was a long-held dream dating back to 1932. Initial plans involved bridging the Untertürkheim goods station and the Daimler-Benz AG site. However World War II halted all progress. It wasn’t until the 1950s that planning resumed. Construction only started in 1986 after a delay of over thirty years.
The Neckartalviadukt Untertürkheim is part of a larger vision. The design was intended to resemble a turbine-shaped cross. This would have incorporated the B 14 and B 312 federal highways as well as the B 10. The southern section the Filderauffahrt never materialized.
The goods station bridge alone is 450 meters long and six lanes wide. It soars 20 meters above the Untertürkheim goods station. Its longest span measures 135 meters. Construction cost a staggering 40 million Deutsche Marks. The project employed every major large-bridge construction method. These include prefabricated part free cantilever scaffolding and incremental launching procedures. The final 1.5 meters were concreted on October 24 1991 a momentous occasion.
The first section of the B 14 ran from Waiblingen to the Benzstrasse junction. This eight-kilometer stretch opened on December 14 1992. The project also included the nearly 1.6-kilometer-long Kappelbergtunnel in Fellbach. This tunnel cost 63 million Deutsche Marks.
The second phase added a kilometer of road at a cost of 76 million Deutsche Marks. This includes 850-meter-long twin bridges. These bridges are six lanes wide and cross the Daimler site at a height of 12 meters. They also include two Neckar bridges and two parallel ramp bridges. These bridges connect to the B 10 federal highway. This segment opened on December 29 1994 completing the direct Remstal-Neckar valley connection.
Today up to 80000 vehicles use this section of the B 14 daily. The entire B 14 project cost 302 million Deutsche Marks. The bridges’ striking red color comes from oil shale cement. This special cement was developed and produced using red oil shale waste from a fluidized bed combustion process for power generation. Three percent hematitic iron ore from Sishen South Africa was added to the raw meal. This enhanced the cement’s properties.
The Neckartalviadukt Untertürkheim isn’t just concrete and steel. It’s a symbol of connection progress and the enduring spirit of Stuttgart. Stand here and feel the weight of history beneath your feet. Feel the pulse of a city that never stops moving.