Guidelines for submitting articles to San Javier Today
Hello, and thank you for choosing sanjavier.today to publicise your organisation’s info or event.
San Javier Today is a website set up by Murcia Today specifically for residents of the urbanisation in Southwest Murcia, providing news and information on what’s happening in the local area, which is the largest English-speaking expat area in the Region of Murcia.
When submitting text to be included on San Javier Today, please abide by the following guidelines so we can upload your article as swiftly as possible:
Send an email to editor@spaintodayonline.com or contact@murciatoday.com
Attach the information in a Word Document or Google Doc
Include all relevant points, including:
Who is the organisation running the event?
Where is it happening?
When?
How much does it cost?
Is it necessary to book beforehand, or can people just show up on the day?
…but try not to exceed 300 words
Also attach a photo to illustrate your article, no more than 100kb
The Puente del Estacio bascule bridge in La Manga del Mar Menor
The bascule in the San Javier section of La Manga allows road traffic to pass between the northern and southern ends
The Estacio bridge which crosses the main channel between the Mediterranean and the Mar Menor in La Manga was built relatively recently, but it has quickly become such a recognizable part of the landscape and the daily life of La Manga that it is hard to imagine it not being there.
It was not until residential and holiday construction began on La Manga del Mar Menor that a bridge crossing the “Gola del Estacio” at kilometre 13 became necessary, making it possible for motor vehicles to reach the northern end of the spit in the municipality of San Javier. The channel was widened to allow maritime traffic to pass between the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean and the problem with a conventional, low road bridge was that even small craft would be impeded.
The first solution provided in 1969 was a swing bridge, but this soon proved unsatisfactory as it had only one lane and long queues were formed by those waiting to use it. However, it was not until 2003 that the current bascule bridge was officially opened, operating on the same basic design as Tower Bridge in London. The two liftable platforms are each 60 metres long and are raised at certain times during daylight to allow boats with a maximum draft of 4 metres to pass.
The whole infrastructure is monitored at these opening times from a 50-metre-high tower erected specifically for this purpose.
From 15th June to 31st August the bridge is opened to maritime traffic every two hours from 8.00 to 22.00, while for the rest of the year it opens for 15 minutes at 10.00, 12.00, 14.00, 16.00, 18.00 and 20.00.