Pedestrian Ways: Modern Pedestrian Bridges 5

Source: Alan Williams wilkinsoneyre.com

Butterfly Bridge, Bedford, UK, 1997 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

The bridge, at 32m in span, has twin steel arches which are inclined like butterfly wings to produce a feeling of containment on the deck and, simultaneously, an openness to the sky. The deck extends onto the landscaped banks at each end to engage with the open space around the bridge and enable step-free access, with longitudinal deck lighting concealed at kicker level within the parapets. The bridge is designed to create an inviting spectator platform and informal ‘grandstand’ during Bedford’s annual regatta. -- architect's web site

Source: wilkinsoneyre.com

South Quay Footbridge, London, UK, 1997 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

The competition brief for this 180m long bridge, one of a series of new pedestrian crossings commissioned for London’s Docklands, was unusual. It called for a bridge with temporary and permanent elements - and the ability to open for shipping. The simple elements of the bridge – the curved lines of the oak-clad deck, two raking masts and the shifting arrays of cable stays – create a visual dynamic, accentuating the kinetics of the design and contrasting sharply with the uniform urban grid beyond. -- architect's web site

Source: Simon Warren wilkinsoneyre.com

Lockmeadow Footbridge, Maidstone, UK, 1999 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

.... with two masts rising at divergent angles over each half of the bridge from a central springing point. These masts take a sculpted, skeletal form and almost disappear into the surrounding trees. The deck also has a minimal effect, being constructed with an extremely slender profile, while parapet infills of stainless steel wedge wire add to the lightness and transparency of the bridge. -- architect's web site

Source: wilkinsoneyre.com

Halgavor Footbridge, Bodmin, UK, 2001 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

The Halgavor Bridge carries pedestrians, cyclists and horses across the A30 near Bodmin in Cornwall. It has a striking 48m suspension span and an innovative glass fibre reinforced plastic deck. -- architect's web site

Source: Ros Kavavagh wilkinsoneyre.com

Swansea Sail Bridge, Swansea, UK, 2003 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

the 140m bridge has a curved deck, supported by stays along one edge from a 50m high inclined steel mast which stands on a sculpted concrete central pier. The simplicity of the overall form is augmented by the apparent delicacy of this asymmetrically suspended walkway.  -- architect's web site

Source: Ros Kavavagh wilkinsoneyre.com

University of Limerick: Living Bridge, Limerick, Ireland, 2007 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

A curvaceous deck sweeps across the Shannon and its embankments in five spans between strategically located support locations. The impression is both of a single crossing but also of a series of bridges jumping from pier to pier, like stepping-stones.  -- architect's web site

Source: Paul McMullin wilkinsoneyre.com

Forthside Pedestrian Bridge, Stirling, UK, 2009 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

This bridge greatly improves pedestrian connections between Stirling’s town centre and railway station. The bridge is aligned to better suit pedestrian desire lines and promote physical and visual connectivity with the town to establish an enhanced sense of place. -- architect's web site

Source: Daniel Hopkinson wilkinsoneyre.com

Media City Footbridge, Salford, UK, 2011 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

The bridge has a dramatic curved form which responds to the radial masterplan of the site and which will form an integral part of an orbital pedestrian route around the Canal basin.  -- architect's web site

Source: Ros Kavavagh wilkinsoneyre.com

Peace Bridge, Derry, UK, 2011 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects

Linking former army barracks with the historic city centre across the water, the bridge has an S-shaped alignment which resolves two skewed axes at each abutment and responds to views up and down the river. -- architect's web site

Pedestrian Ways: Modern Pedestrian Bridges 4

Source: Pushak archdaily.com

Lillefjord Rest area & footbridge, Lillefjord, Finnmark, Norway, 2006 designed by Pushak

The new bridge was our proposal; it works as a sign towards the trail, while at the same time taking care of all the demanded functions. It is leading on to an older trail, crossing the soft, green carpet of vegetation in the midst of the river delta.  By placing all the program in the bridge, the road stop installation is now a distinct object placed in the landscape. This felt appropriate for the rough and grand nature of the site, rather than small furniture placed around or in the ground. -- ArchDaily

Source: Dag Jenssen archdaily.com

Høse Bridge, Suldal, Norway designed by Rintala Eggertsson Architects

The bridge connects the town to a vast wooden landscape which is used for recreation by the inhabitants of Sand. This new connection makes the area more accessible for the general public and allows people of all generations to use the area. The idea behind the chosen proposal was to establish a horizontal reference line in the landscape, to emphasize the undulant and organic shapes in the bedrock. -- ArchDaily

Source: archdaily.com

Heart of Love River, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, 2007 designed by Malone Chang Architects

By creating three bridges plus two lakes, this project defines cruise and pedestrian circulation, and various activities by multiple layers of sectional divisions. The boundaries of fields such as grass, water, and paving are implied by floating bridges and extending decks. The bridges form a fashionable urban catwalk, hovering the busy artery. Perforated metal cladding filters light from within, and renders the whole field a blurry and mysterious aura. -- ArchDaily

Source: Daylight archdaily.com

Knokke Footbridge, Knokke, Flanders, Belgium, 2007 designed by Ney & Partners

From a conceptual point of view, the bridge consists of welded bent steel plates of 12mm thickness, forming a structural “hammock” to which a concrete deck is tied. To resist shear forces, caused by the bent shape in plan, the sides of the plates are inclined at 45°, with respect to the central axis. -- ArchDaily

Source: Fernando Alda archdaily.com

Motril Footbridge, Motril, Granada, Spain, 2011 designed by Guijón Arquitectura

The structures have been used are organic hexagonal design which allows easy adaptation to the surrounding environment, from host in its structure existing trees and adapt on the slopes to facilitate pedestrian traffic, allowing the movement of persons with motor disabilities. -- ArchDaily

Source: Joseph Burns archdaily.com

Pennington Road Footbridge, Merseyside, UK, 2011 designed by Softroom

The overall bridge form follows a typology of traditional canal bridges, where a ramped side approach links to a simple spanning or shallow arched bridge structure.  Updated for current standards of accessibility, the steep ramp has been replaced with a more complex shallow inclined and stepped approach, and gently curving approaches have been cut into a newly formed hard landscape, much as paths wind their way up a hillside slope. -- ArchDaily

Source: architectmagazine.com

Peace Bridge, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 2012 designed by Santiago Calatrava

Just 5.85 meters high and 8 meters wide, the compact, ruby-red helical bridge stretching across the Bow River stands out from the landscape as well as from Calatrava’s portfolio of soaring, white-concrete, cable-stayed bridges. Site constraints limited the design team to a 7-meter-tall envelope bounded by the river’s flood level below and the flight path for a nearby heliport above. Ecological concerns barred intermediate supports in the water, requiring a bridge type able to span the full 126 meters (413 feet). “A tube was a clear contender,” says Calatrava, the Switzerland-based founder of his eponymous firm, “but there was a danger of creating a tunnel-like bridge.” -- ARCHITECT

Source: Thomas Mayer archdaily.com

Wupper-Bridge Opladen, Opladen, Leverkusen, Germany, 2012 designed by Ağırbaş & Wienstroer

The planners put the green color of nature against the Red of the weather-resistant steel in the massive body of the bridge on both sides of the river.  It is a game of heaviness and lightness, a dialogue of light and dark, thick and thin, of large and small. The static height of this bar is ideal for sitting on it. Thus, the bridge is not only a traffic building on a river, but also a place to relax with a “park bench”. -- ArchDaily

Source: Adnan Alagić, Bojan Kanlić & Amila Hrustić archdaily.com

Festina Lente, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2012 designed by Adnan Alagić, Bojan Kanlić & Amila Hrustić

The basic idea of the bridge is the union of the secular and spiritual and to establish a balance between left and right side. -- ArchDaily

Source: ipv Delft archdaily.com

Hovenring, Circular Cycle Bridge, Eindhoven, Netherlands, 2012 designed by ipv Delft

The cable-stayed bridge offers cyclists and pedestrians an exciting crossover. With its impressive 70-metre pylon, 72 metre diameter, thin deck and conspicuous lighting, the cyclist roundabout is a new landmark for the city. -- ArchDaily

Source: Hanns Joosten archdaily.com

Spannbandbrücke, Tirschenreuth, Germany, 2013 designed by ANNABAU

The wooden body of the bridge is closely connected to the historical meaning of wood in the city of Tirschenreuth, which can also be seen in the cities name. In addition the choice of material refers directly to the vernacular architecture, where untreated wood is often found in construction. The supporting structure of tensioned steel bands requires a minimal substructure, thus the sculptural body of the bridge comes to the foreground. -- ArchDaily

Source: Leonardo Finotti archdaily.com

Friedrich Bayer Bridge, São Paulo – São Paulo, Brazil, 2013 designed by LoebCapote Arquitetura e Urbanismo

Besides connecting the two sides of the canal, the bridge generates a place to contemplate the landscape. Two metallic islands over concrete pilotes surve as support for the 90 meters lenth bridge. Those metallic islands are covered by vegetation, a reference to water-lilies, which were the conceptual reference for the project. In order to maintain the canal navigability, the central span is movable: the two central parts of the linear structure rotate by using electrical motor. -- ArchDaily

Source: Zhenfei Wang archdaily.com

Pedestrian Bridge, Rizhao, China designed by HHD_FUN Architects

Alongside the beach, the key feature of this park is its 50 year old black pine forest and the design challenges are to minimize the construction impact to the natural environment. The curved form was strategically designed to allow the 45 meters long bridge fit into the natural environment while at the same time provide a connection between the city and the beach park. -- ArchDaily

Source: NEXT Architects archdaily.com

Melkwegbrug, Purmerend, The Netherlands designed by NEXT Architects

The most striking part of the bridge, designed by NEXT architects, is a massive arch which reaches the height of 12m above water level and stands in a continuous line with the Melkweg-road, thus offering an incredible view over the city. The high lookout is an attraction in itself and lets pedestrians fully experience the relation between the new and historic center of Purmerend. -- ArchDaily

Source: Jesus Granada archdaily.com

Twisted Valley, Elche, Alicante, Spain designed by Grupo Aranea

The roads that float on the untouchable riverbed of concrete, become the heroes of the reconquest. And they blur the difference between bridge and path, becoming a graphic thought solved by a material abstraction. A single bridge becomes a network of trails which fold, bend, stretch, tighten, disperse, curve, and of course twist. -- ArchDaily

Source: Timothy Soar archdaily.com

River Hull Footbridge, Hull, UK designed by McDowell + Benedetti

The structure consists of a steel spine cantilevering around from a 3-dimensional braced ring structure approximately 16m in diameter. The spine is a hybrid structure with the ‘root’ section conceived as a diagrid/shell structure and the tip as a shell structure. Steel plates clad the surface of the walkways whilst horizontal bracing provides additional longitudinal stiffness. -- ArchDaily

Source: Michael Zimmermann archdaily.com

Passerelle de la Paix, Passerelle de la Paix, 69300 Caluire-et-Cuire, France, 2014 designed by Dietmar Feichtinger Architectes

The bridge spans over the river with a free span of 157 meters. Two cantilevers built of a three dimensional asymmetric tube structure join in the middle of the river. The structure is extremely slender and offers a maximum of transparency. -- ArchDaily

Source: DISSING+WEITLING Architecture archdaily.com

Bicycle Snake, Passerelle de la Paix, 69300 Caluire-et-Cuire, France, 2014 designed by DISSING+WEITLING Architecture

The bicycle snake meanders 6-7 meters above sea surface with a length of 190 meters and 30 meters of ramp. The bridge is made of steel, which helps to give it a light and elegant look. The surface has a bright orange color, which creates a clear visual course for cyclists. -- ArchDaily

Source: archdaily.com

Merchant Square Footbridge, Paddington, London W2, UK, 2014 designed by Knight Architects

....the 3m wide cantilevered structure spans 20m across the Grand Union Canal and is raised using hydraulic jacks with an action similar to that of a traditional Japanese hand fan. This creates a kinetic sculpture whose silhouette is both legible and extraordinary and which is well suited to the position next to the canal. -- ArchDaily

Source: Miran Kambič archdaily.com

Footbridge Ribja brv, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2014 designed by Arhitektura d.o.o

....a transparent, elegant footbridge of minimalist design over the river, one which will allow unobstructed views along the river but at the same time connect both banks as a wide viewpoint over the river. -- ArchDaily

Source: Sina Ahmadi, Mohammad Hassan Ettefagh archdaily.com

Tabiat Pedestrian Bridge, Tehran, Iran, 2014 designed by Diba Tensile Architecture

Tabiat Bridge is the largest pedestrian bridge built so far in Iran. Located in north of Tehran, it connects two public parks by spanning over Shahid Modarres, one of the major highways of the city. ‘Tabiat’ means ‘Nature’ in Persian language. The bridge is about 270 meters long and consists of a 3 dimensional truss with two continuous levels that sits on three tree shape columns. -- ArchDaily

Source: Miran Kambič archdaily.com

Rafting Bridge, Celje, Slovenia, 2014 designed by Arhitektura d.o.o.

The bridge was to span the river in one leap. The new footbridge therefore will not compete with the ambiance of the town scenery by being extravagant or garish, but will complement it with a youthful elegance and boldness, which are made possible by using new technologies and knowledge. -- ArchDaily

Source: Anders Sune Berg archdaily.com

Cirkelbroen Bridge, Christianshavns Kanal, København K, Denmark, 2015 designed by Studio Olafur Eliasson

The bridge is made of five circular platforms, and it contributes to a larger circle that will form a pedestrian route around Copenhagen Harbour, where people – cycling, running, walking – can see the city from a very different perspective. -- ArchDaily

Pedestrian Ways: covered urban system

Source: Yao Li archdaily.com

Xiaoquan Elementary School, Xiaoquan town, Sichuan Province, China, 2010 designed by TAO

The design is conceived as a cluster of small buildings to create a micro-city like campus. The fragmentary instead of unified building composition creates many urban like place such us streets, plazas, courtyards, and steps at various scales. These places are intended to encourage diversified and spontaneous activities of children. Small-scale playful corners and labyrinth like space as passage and playground are created to provoke children’s curiosity and imagination. Through this, we also intend to continue the urban space memory of Xiaoquan town in the school building, so as to avoid completely losing the continuity of urban fabric during rebuilding process after earthquake. -- ArchDaily

Source: Chyutin Architects archdaily.com

Haifa Court House, Haifa, Israel, 2011 designed by Chyutin Architects

The interior of the structure is designed as a covered urban system. The courthouse’s entrance space is the continuation of the external pedestrian street, which is defined by the office buildings and stores along its length. The space is designed as a covered street defined on its sides by the administrative and judicial wings. The public activities (the library and restaurant) face the main space, like the stores on the main road.  -- ArchDaily

Source: Richard Haughton archdaily.com

Birmingham Schools Framework, Birmingham, UK, 2012 designed by Haworth Tompkins

A new circulation spine connects the many disparate elements and a previously inaccessible courtyard has been transformed by larch-clad covered walkways to create a sheltered, collegiate atmosphere. This new ‘Quad’ is a shared amenity that can be used to meet, pray, study and dine. The choice of timber is multi-layered: It provides an attractive, robust, maintenance free enclosure, and its organic nature contrasts with the tough urbanity of the surrounding buildings. Internally, the narrow corridors have been opened up creating breakout areas, or ‘social learning zones’, around which staff offices are located. These reduce congestion, increase passive supervision and allow daylight into the space, in addition to creating informal learning spaces outside of the classroom. -- ArchDaily

Pedestrian Ways: Modern Pedestrian Bridges 3

Source: popupcity.net

Rotterdam’s Crowd-Funded Pedestrian Bridge

The International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam (IABR) and Rotterdam-based architecture firm ZUS have launched the project I Make Rotterdam, a spectacular temporary pedestrian bridge between the city’s Central and the North districts that will be financed through crowd-funding. -- The Pop-Up City

Pedestrian Ways: Internal Street

Source: Josef Weichenberger Architects

Wohngarten Sensengasse, Vienna, Austria, 2009 designed by Josef Weichenberger Architects

The linear construction, composed of three connected individual buildings, creates a membrane-like break between the park area and the urban space. In doing so, particular attention has been paid to permeability with paths and visual connections in the direction of the park on the one hand and the partly two-floor ground floor area forms part of the open urban space. These spaces with their views upon the surrounding greenery create a “green break” in association with the untouched and completely preserved tree avenue in the Sensengasse which fuse the façade of the garden and the airy opening of the “vertical green” together with the park to form one organic whole. -- ArchDaily

Source: Frederik Vercruysse archdaily.com

Apartments BUSO, Mechelen, Belgium, 2010 designed by dmvA Architecten

The pretty closed factory building contained two floors. On several places, where the structure of the building allowed to, openings were made in roof and floors. These openings generated patios and an inner street. The openings allow sunlight to enter the building. Stairs connect the semi-public inner-street with the urban tissue of alleys. All loft-dwellings are accessed by way of this semi-public space. Each loft is unique. Contemporary transparent building volumes are placed on top of the building as an extra space for the lofts. The roof becomes one big roofgarden, planted with sedums. -- ArchDaily

Source: Pierre-Yves Brunaud

Lucie Residence, Bezons, France, 2011 designed by Gemaile RECHAK Architect

The links between the 32 apartments are visible on the outside, acting as both walkways and viewing galleries that connect the various facades between them. Blocks, breathing spaces and loggias are set against each other as the space and materials combine in a reinvented symbiosis. The viewing gallery has been treated as an internal street, punctuated by alternating built spaces and landscaped spaces which respect the existing lot line. -- ArchDaily

Source: Margherita Spiluttini archdaily.com

St. Nikolaus Neumarkt, Austria designed by Kadawittfeldarchitektur

In comparison to a small city, this home for the elderly provides its inhabitants a lively environment through its sequence of passages and places including a foyer, “interior streets,” a green atrium, dining room, and terraced courtyard. -- ArchDaily

Pedestrian Ways: Modern Pedestrian Bridges 2

Source: Richard Davies

Floating Bridge, London, UK, 1996 designed by Future Systems

The slender form of the bridge is evocative of a brightly coloured insect touching the water as lightly as a water skater, offering pedestrians a sense of freedom as they cross. Colour is central to the concept – like a laser beam of light the bridge skims the dock with a piercing lime green line, the sense of perspective exaggerated by the tapering plan of the deck. -- MIMOA

Source: Dirk Verwoerd

Zubizuri Bridge, Bilbao, Spain, 1997 designed by Santiago Calatrava

The Zubizuri (Basque for "white bridge"), also called the Campo Volantin Bridge or Puente del Campo Volantin, is a tied arch footbridge across the Nervion River in Bilbao, linking the Campo Volantin right bank and Uribitarte left bank of the river. The design consists of an inclined structural steel arch linking two platforms, with access ramps and stairways on both banks. -- MIMOA

Source:  Naomi Schiphorst

Borneo Sporenburg Bridge, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2000 designed by West 8

Three red steel bridges span the water between the residential islands Sporenburg and Borneo. Two of them have a span of 90 m, and the third has a span of 25 m over the inner harbour. The pedestrian bridge has a spectacular meandering shape. -- MIMOA 

Source: arup.com

Nescio Bridge, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2005 designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects/Arup

The Netherlands’ first suspension bridge carries cyclists and pedestrians over the Amsterdam Rhine canal to the new suburb of Ijburg. Spanning the canal 10m above the water, the bridge allows enough clearance to give commercial boats unrestricted access to the waterway. The mono-cable, self-anchored structure curves to follow the natural course for cyclists. It splits in two at both ends to separate pedestrians from cyclists and to improve the stiffness of the structure. -- engineer's web site

Source: Carlos Dias

Pedro e Inês Bridge, Coimbra, Portugal, 2006 designed by Cecil Balmond/Adão da Fonseca

this bridge connects the two shores of the Mondego River in the city of Coimbra, managing to create an access by foot and bicycle to the two parks located in each side of the river. The wooden passage has a small "square" in the centre where the two dislocated passages are joined together. It's a very elegant structure with a very minimalistic design, challenging engineering. -- MIMOA

Source: archdaily.com

Quingpu Pedestrian Bridge, Quingpu, Shanghai, China, 2008 designed by CA-DESIGN

we decided to link both sides of the 50 meters wide river with a bent path. The bent axis responds to different access conditions and visually adapts to the surroundings.

In order to resist the strong torsion stress associated with the support-less winding shape of the bridge, we activate structurally all the sides of its distorted volume. -- ArchDaily

Source: archdaily.com

Bridge in Esch, Esch, Alzette, Luxembourg, 2009 designed by Metaform Architects And T6-Ney & Partners

The idea was to create a direct connection between the heart of the city and the green space (Park of Galgenberg).

The single volume is characterized by an uncluttered and minimalist design philosophy. The volume gesture clearly contrasts with the chaotic environment (overhead lines, power lines, boulevard, bus platforms and trains, roundabouts etc). The aesthetic of the project makes this bridge unique and creates a strong image for the station area. -- ArchDaily

Source: wikipedia.org

Leonardo Bridge Project, Oslo, Norway

The Leonardo Bridge Project is a non-profit corporation in the United States with a 501(c) 3 under the Allied Arts Foundation. Our mission is to build a global network of permanent landmark bridges, public arts projects based on Leonardo da Vinci’s 1502 “Golden Horn” (Halic) bridge design.

The project is the brain-child of Norwegian artist, Vebjørn Sand, who is the artistic director.

The Leonardo Bridge Project is not a cookie-cutter structure but a re-imagining of Leonardo’s eloquently flexible design. It is a design, like a brilliant passage of music, re-imagined for different locations, in different materials and by different artisans around the world.  -- official web site

Source: Emilio Collavino archdaily.com

Ponte della Musica, Rome, Italy, 2011 designed by Buro Happold

The bridge has been designed to serve as an open public space that can be used for festivals, exhibitions and fairs and also has the future facility to operate as a tram and bus route. Designed by Buro Happold it is the first public footbridge to cross the Tiber since Roman times.  -- ArchDaily

Source: RO&AD Architecten archdaily.com

Moses Bridge, Halsteren, The Netherlands, 2011 designed by RO&AD Architecten

Its construction is entirely made of wood, waterproofed with EPDM foil. The bridge lies like a trench in the fortress and the moat, shaped to blend in with the outlines of the landscape.

The bridge can’t be seen from a distance because the ground and the water come all the way up to its edge. When you get closer, the fortress opens up to you through a narrow trench. You can then walk up to its gates like Moses on the water. -- ArchDaily

Source: Lourdes Jansana - Nicolás Markuerkiaga archdaily.com

Footbridge over the River Segre, Lleida, Spain, 2011 designed by Ravetllat Ribas Architects

The landings are very different on each one of the margins. On the right side, the footbridge support seeks to avoid any substantial alterations in the surroundings, and the margin rises in order to absorb the height difference caused by preserving the hydraulic section. In contrast, on the left bank, the void existing between Avinguda dels Camps Elisis and the new wall of the riverbank allows to develop a wider landing of the bridge, which extends seamlessly and becomes the footbridge. -- ArchDaily

Source: Rosales + Partners Architects archdaily.com

Phyllis J. Tilley Memorial Bridge, Fort Worth, Texas, USA, 2012 designed by Miguel Rosales

This beautiful pedestrian bridge will link trail connections to two of our city’s fastest growing residential centers – downtown and the cultural district. the 384-foot Stress Ribbon style bridge is the first of its kind to be constructed in the United States. --Streams and Valleys

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