Nissibi Euphrates Bridge

The Nissibi Euphrates Bridge is a cable stayed bridge spanning the Lake Atatürk Dam on the Euphrates River in south eastern Anatolia.

The former bridge was flooded during the construction of the 817 km2 reservoir in 1992, resulting in the disconnection of highway link between Adıyaman and Diyarbakır. The new bridge significantly reduces the travel time between both cities. 

Due to the complications and cost involved in positioning the bridge pier inside the reservoir of the dam, the bridge crosses the reservoir with a single main central span of 400 meters. The height of each pylon is 96,8 meters, approximately one-fourth of the main span length. The bridge has a 1.5 m walkway, a 1.5 m emergency lane and 3,5 m traffic lane in both directions. It is Turkey’s third largest bridge.

An engineering challenge has been to consistently consider seismic hazard. The bridge is located in the area of East Anatolian Fault, a major strike-slip fault zone in eastern Turkey, which is among the world's most seismically active countries.