Pont de Varades, Suspension bridge in Loireauxence, France

The Pont de Varades is a suspension bridge over the Loire between La Meilleraie, in Loireauxence, and the Île Batailleuse. It is about 309 metres long with a main span of 178 metres, carrying two traffic lanes and two pavements. Its deck hangs from white main cables that sweep down from two grey concrete towers, with thin vertical suspenders and a white steel parapet with X-shaped bracing.

An earlier suspension bridge was built in 1852 by the Escarraguel brothers at this location. The current structure dates to 1954 and was constructed as part of France's post-war infrastructure rebuilding program.

The bridge carries about 8,000 vehicles a day between the former fishing village of La Meilleraie and Île Batailleuse. Together with the Pont de Saint-Florent-le-Vieil it is the crossing that links Loireauxence to Mauges-sur-Loire. In Breton it is called Pont Gwared, and it is the first bridge over the Loire when following the river downstream through Brittany.

The deck carries two traffic lanes and two sidewalks, crossed by about 8,000 vehicles a day. Since 2014 the bridge has been under reinforced monitoring; lorries were banned from 2 March to 24 October 2020, with the speed limit cut from 70 to 50 km/h. Twelve extra supports stand in the riverbed from the summer 2020 works.

In 2020, twelve additional support pillars were installed directly in the riverbed to reinforce the bridge's structural integrity. At the same time, the suspension cables were adjusted to provide temporary structural stability during these reinforcement works.