Cyclists Bridge | Deventer
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The Rotterdam Architectural firm ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd] has won the tender for the Pedestrian – Cyclists bridge spanning provincial road N348 and the Overijssel canal in Deventer. ONL partook in the tender in collaboration with Dura Vermeer and will work on the design and complex geometry during the coming months in preparation for the realisation of the project.
The design of ONL endeavours to capture the essence of the span with one fluid motion. This approach guarantees that the required autonomous part the span plays is preserved to its full extent without being overbearing in the overall picture. One long slightly crowned elastic line determines the contour of the bridge.
All remaining lines do their part to enhance the impression of fluid motion and thereby endow the bridge with its slender sculpturesque character. The crease lines on either side of the span enforce the suggestion of strength.
The crease lines and the convergence of the lines play an important role in the architectural design of the bridge. Additionally the crease lines on either side of the bridge deck foster a division in the reflectance of the surroundings and the spans own shadow. The 150m long surface just above the crease line reflects the sky irrespective of weather conditions, this reflectance will always be lighter than the reflection from the earth and that of the bridge's own shadow below the crease line. As a result the elongated robust design exhibits a distinct slender presence.
After dusk the image of reflectance of the outside of the guardrail reverses as the underside of the the bridge is illuminated, then the lower side of the guardrail also lights up while the top of the guardrail remains dark and virtually disappears against the night sky.
ONL has chosen to build the bridge out of a single material to attain a monolithic architectural image of the structure. Guardrails, roadway, both ends and the pillars are all constructed in situ out of concrete and covered with a white coating.
The planning foresees that the pedestrian – cyclists bridge will be finished by the end of 2010.
Credits
Site: Cyclists Bridge, Deventer
Client: Gemeente Deventer
Date: 2009
Lead design: Kas Oosterhuis
Project architect: Gijs Joosen
Design team: Kas Oosterhuis, Ilona Lénárd, Gijs Joosen, András Csiszér, Pieter Schreurs