In Dresden, two bridges directly next to each other over the Elbe between Wilsdruffer Vorstadt and the Inner Neustadt are called Marienbrücke. The 434 m long stone arch bridge at Elbe kilometer 56.5 has existed since 1852 and was initially a combined road and rail bridge after the old Augustus Bridge from the 1730s, the second fixed Elbe crossing in Dresden. The Marienbrücke is the oldest Elbe bridge in the city.
In 1901, a separate, parallel bridge structure with four tracks was put into operation downstream (north) for rail traffic. The old bridge from 1852 is only used for tram and road traffic (Bundesstraße 6). Between 2001 and 2004, the steel arches of the railway overpass were replaced by a new prestressed concrete bridge 490 m long for five tracks. [1]
The Marienbrücke is named after Maria Anna of Bavaria, the wife of the Saxon King Friedrich August II. [2] and, like the neighboring Augustus Bridge, is a technical monument and a cultural monument of Dresden.