The bridge, over the Salaca River in Salacgriva, less than 20 kilometers from the border with Estonia, also has dual-use functionality and can bear loads as heavy as main battle tanks.

The bridge opened on Wednesday in both directions, public broadcaster LSM reported.

The project was launched after the old bridge had become increasingly dilapidated, leading to major bottlenecks. This problem was particularly evident after a major concert in Tallinn in August 2023, attended by many Latvians and Lithuanians, and additional pressure had also come from the Estonian state to upgrade the bridge.

In response, a temporary replacement bridge was set up, while the new bridge came in ahead of schedule and took around a year-and-a-half to construct. It also uses technologically new approaches not used in Latvia before.

"This bridge has reinforced concrete beams of different heights. They were assembled on the Heinaste side of the river and then installed onto the new supports. That was the most complex part of the entire construction. And naturally, the demolition of the old bridge as well. All nine supports had to be taken apart. It was a major challenge," project manager Edgars Vaivods told "Aktuaalne kaamera."

According to the builders, these methods represented a significant technical innovation for Latvia. The bridge now allows for faster, more convenient and safer north-south movement between Estonia and Latvia along the Via Baltica route.

"I don't even know whether to call it pressure or a necessity, but we have indeed talked a lot with the Estonians about the importance of the Salaca bridge. For Estonians, this bridge is very important, because they need a fast and easy connection to Europe along the Via Baltica. The year spent on construction turned out to be very difficult. We monitored it closely from our side. I am proud and satisfied that we managed to complete the new bridge on time," Latvian Transport Minister Atis Švinka said.

Before construction could begin, the old bridge — owned by the local Limbaži municipality — had to be nationalized, and the Latvian state applied for EU funding under the Military Mobility program. Of the €15 million construction cost, around half came from the European Investment Fund (EIF).

Work started June 10 last year with the temporary bridge. The completed new bridge features modern materials and expanded dimensions. It has four-span steel-concrete girders to a total width of 14.5 meters, offering a carriageway width of 8 meters. A 2.5-meter sidewall is in place for pedestrians and cyclists, while an upper walkway of 4.5 meters' width provides viewing areas. The bridge features energy-efficient lighting.

Importantly, it can also bear heavy loads, including a column of tanks—something the old bridge could not have done.

Other construction challenges included taking into account the Salaca River's rapid throughflows at that location, and fish spawning seasons.

The tender signed in spring 2024 was concluded with the general partnership "NB&Tilts," consisting of Nordes būve Ltd and Tilts Ltd.

The Latvian state says it also hopes to bring private capital into building other Via Baltica sections, including a widening of the Riga ring road and a bypass around the town of Bauska, near the Lithuanian border.

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