The Mittelland Canal Trough Bridges

Via a wide trough bridge at the picturesque waterway junction, large cargo ships can leisurely cruise across the countryside on Hanover’s “Canale Grande,” while day-trippers paddle leisurely beneath them on the Blue Canal through the countryside.

The bridge for ships

On the lime-green trough bridge, the Mittellandkanal (at 325.3 kilometers, Germany’s longest man-made waterway) splits into two “lanes”—namely, the so-called “Alte Fahrt” and the “Neue Fahrt.” In fact, the riveted steel girder bridge, resting on angular natural stone piers, consists of two separate structures built in different eras. The trough bridge over the 24-meter-wide, 3-meter-deep, and now-defunct “Alte Fahrt” was put into service in 1917; with its Art Nouveau-style railing, it faces east, is a listed historic monument, and is now used only as a detour route during inspection and maintenance work on the new canal sections. Its neighbor, the trough bridge over the “Neue Fahrt”—which, at 55 meters, is significantly wider and 4 meters deep—is the Leine flood bridge; it was built in the 1980s and 1990s when the Mittellandkanal had to be expanded to accommodate ever-wider freighters due to increased shipping traffic.

Cycling along the waterway

For day-trippers, the impressive pair of bridges—one above and one below the water—is particularly appealing, as a section of the 333-kilometer-long Leine Cycle Path runs along the Mittellandkanal to Garbsen on the old trough bridge. It’s worth cycling down from the embankment (which, by the way, is also ideal for short dog walks) along the paved path to the Leine riverbank directly beneath the two trough bridges: only up close can you get a sense of the imposing steel structures that must bear the entire weight of the canal water and the ships. By the way: the flood marks can be seen on the left side of the masonry. If you like, you can cycle back up to the canal on the “Neue Fahrt” side and continue eastward to the “Alter Hafen” boat landing in Garbsen.