"The commencement of work on April 25 will begin shortly, perhaps even before the end of this year," said Pedro Marques, co-listening to the discussions of the three parliamentary committees in the specialty of the 2019 State Budget proposal (OE2019).
"We are now waiting for a visa from the Court of Auditors," he continued, adding that then the 25 de Abril bridge could "engage in the construction phase".
On September 20, Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP) announced that the works of Ponte 25 de Abril were awarded to a consortium consisting of Finnish companies, Sociedade de Montagens Metalomecânica and STAP-Reparação, Consolidação e Modificación from the structures.
"The planned intervention refers to the hanging bridge elements and the pre-tensioned reinforced concrete elements of the northern access viaduct," the company said at that time on the work on the bridge connecting the two banks of the Tagus River between Almadhus and Lisbon.
Initially, in the IP, it was estimated that the work would be budgeted at EUR 18 million, while the winning consortium, out of six, submitted a lower tender for a total amount of EUR 12.6 million.
On September 12, also in parliament, Minister Pedro Marques decided that the contract will begin "later this year.
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The view next to the ship where the cars are at 25 Abril bridge height is 80 meters.
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Experience Pilar 7 – Interpretation Center from 25 de Abril Bridge, Avenida da Índia
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(Archive)
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Tickets are from 4 euros (for students, senior citizens or people in groups of 10 or more visitors) and 6 euros. Children up to five years old are free of charge. Virtual reality session costs 1.5 €. The center is open from 10:00 until 20:00 from May to September and from 10:00 to 18:00 from October to April.
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The visit starts at the space where the original infrastructure model is located, followed by a lift at the first elevator in the Workers' Hall, where four small films, construction and interference with the bridge over the Tagus are shown in honor of those who built the bridge.
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The visit goes through a mirror room to give an illusion of the depth of the column, as well as a foot trail overlooking the river, leading to another panoramic elevator. This will give visitors up to the highway – about 80 meters.
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After landing, there is a simulator that allows a visitor to follow the bridge's maintenance team through virtual reality.
