Extension of the Ring Road and Climate Protection of Horsens City

In a few years, the center of Horsens will be protected against flooding from Horsens Fjord. As the main consultant for Horsens Municipality, SYSTRA is helping to implement the solution that will put Horsens on the map with one of the country’s most efficient pumping systems for climate and storm surge protection.

project description

Horsens’ city center is particularly vulnerable to rising water levels in Horsens Fjord. In the last couple of decades, there have been several floods, the largest of which in 2006 caused significant damage in the lower parts of the city.

The upcoming climate protection solution is part of Horsens Municipality’s road project concerning the extension of Ringvej Syd, which aims to divert traffic away from Horsens city center. The new ring road will cross Horsens Fjord on an embankment that will serve as a storm surge protection and a defense against a rising water level in the fjord.

One of the country’s most efficient pumping systems for climate protection

The new dam construction crosses the streams Bygholm Å and Dagnæs Bæk. At the dam at the outlet for Bygholm Å, a sluice system will be established – along with a pumping station with Archimedes pumps, which are capable of pumping 30 m³/s of water into the fjord when the sluice system is closed. At the outlet for Dagnæs Bæk, a sluice will be established.

In the design of the Archimedes pumps, consideration has been given to the expected future increases in rainfall and the resulting inflow volumes to the watercourses from, among other sources, Bygholm Lake and the city of Horsens.

It will become one of the most efficient pumping systems to date for climate protection of a Danish city and will put Horsens at the forefront in terms of pump and sluice capacity for storm surge protection.

The sluice and pump system is expected to be co-financed by SAMN Forsyning in Horsens. The reason is that the establishment of a sluice and pump system to manage the high water level in the fjord is a significant advantage compared to other solutions in the city center, where implementing solutions is costly and there is limited space for water storage.

Nature and wildlife along the coast

The project has taken into account the area’s otter population, fish population, navigation possibilities for small boats and kayaks, as well as the future operation of the facility, which has been optimized with, among other things, the choice of Archimedes’ screws. Technically, these are large installations that need to be very reliable and easy to operate.

Protection of the area’s nature and wildlife is a high priority, including the local otter population. One of the tunnels, which is part of the project, will be a wildlife passage designed specifically for the otters that live near the streams and the fjord.

The aesthetics of the lock and pumping station are a very important factor for Horsens Municipality. As shown in visualizations from LYTT Architecture, the facility is designed to blend naturally into the surrounding landscape and offer new nature experiences for the area’s residents. Thus, the lock will become a new characteristic landmark that will shape the view from the harbor area for many years to come.