04 March 2013

Bridges news roundup

So, what has being going on in the world of bridges news since I last did a round up? Well, let's kick off with four bridges that have appeared on the ArchDaily website ...

The Gold Line Bridge / Rivka Night + Andrew Leicester
Weird concrete bridge created with artist involvement. I can't say I really like it.

Ueberflieger Bridge / Agirbas and Wienstroer
Nope. I don't like this one either. Next!

Phyllis J. Tilley Memorial Bridge / Rosales + Partners Architects
Oh, now this is more like it. A really elegant little arch-supported stress ribbon bridge, in Texas. I wonder who the engineer is? Let's read the article. Er. Um. No engineer, apparently (par for the course for ArchDaily). I know, let's look up the datasheet on the architect's website, I'm sure they will credit their collaborator. Umm, no. Hey, maybe there was no engineer! Wait, here's an article about the bridge by the American Society of Civil Engineers, this will tell me! Hmm. Architect says this, architect did this, architect did that. Yadda yadda. Oh wait, here it is right at the end: Schlaich Bergermann and Partners, with Freese and Nichols. Really now, did that have to be so difficult?

Hovenring, Circular Cycle Bridge / ipv Delft
At this point, I feel tempted never to link to the ignoramuses at ArchDaily ever again. But here's one more, for now.

Snow-free pedestrian bridge by Erik Andersson Architects
Et tu, Designboom? A simple, elegant bridge, designed apparently without the aid of an engineer.

Mystery of Yuma's swastika bridge explored
So, why does this concrete bridge in Arizona have forty swastikas adorning its sides?

Chinese fireworks truck explosion destroys bridge
Self-evident from the title.

Sicily bridge project sinks in Italy budget mire
No surprise at all to see world's longest suspension bridge an early casualty of Italy's political instability.

$320,000 a year to maintain new River Torrens footbridge to Adelaide Oval
They're kidding, surely. For what and where it is, this AUS$40m footbridge seems amazingly expensive, as do the reported maintenance costs.

Council approves LRT bridge design
The council in question being Edmonton, Canada, who have opted for an extradosed solution for their new light rail bridge. I especially liked the comment from one councillor that it would be more expensive than alternatives "'cos Wikipedia sez so" (I paraphrase). "At that point, Coun. Dave Loken pretended to repeatedly stab himself in the forehead with his microphone."

Engineers repairing famous Tarr Steps clapper bridge applaud 3,000-year-old design
Flood-damaged ancient bridge to be put back together for £10,000. No sightings of Humpty Dumpty.

Scotland to be cut free as closure of bridge that connects the UK announced
Great headline, thanks to Tallbridgeguy for spotting this story, although it's worth noting that the body of the story doesn't confirm that closure is proposed (for the Union Chain Bridge, Britain's oldest suspension bridge), just that there's no money for refurbishment. The comments at the article's end are particularly splendid.

This Beautiful Wooden Pedestrian Bridge Was Crowdfunded When The City Couldn’t Pay
Rotterdam footbridge paid for piece-by-piece. Perhaps someone should tell those looking after the Union Chain Bridge? It wouldn't be the first use of crowdfunding for a bridge in the UK, after all.

Binladen bridge could spark war
Proposed bridge between Egypt and Saudi Arabia criticised as tantamount to an act of war against Israel. While the article is largely nonsense, the serious point that bridges have often historically been built to facilitate military strategy is worth noting.

Egypt-Saudi bridge: Is the government sacrificing natural resources for short-term gains?
You could read this article and not even realise it's the same bridge, so different is the perspective. Here, concerns are reported over the lack of transparency regarding its environmental impact.

Campaign planned against Braemar footbridge
I featured this proposed bridge a couple of months ago. According to the BBC, it may not be supported by all locals. A blog post here gives the arguments against development in the Braemar area.

Bridges on the Aston-Sheffield-Leeds motorway
Excellent post at the Tallbridgeguy blog highlighting some innovative and very interesting concrete bridges on the M1 motorway. It's well worth following the link to Concrete Quarterly for photos of several more related bridges, as well as a link to an interview with Ron Brindle in a follow-up post. Great stuff.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Credit where credit's due; the Tullhus Bridge, by the architect Erik Andersson, in Norrköping was engineered by Ramboll.