ZJA has received an honorable mention for the design of a pedestrian bridge in Gdansk, Poland.
Earlier this year, the Gdansk municipality issued a competition for a footbridge over the Motlawa River, in the heart of the historic Hanseatic city. In response to this competition, ZJA proposed a design for a balanced and rotating cable-stayed bridge. The bridge is to form a link between the Philharmonic and the Maritime Museum on Olowianka island and the city center. Besides that, the bridge is to accelerate the development of the island as a cultural hotspot.
The principle objective of the design is to maintain the view of the historic center, to preserve the historic quays and to provide a new landmark for the city. In order to keep the bridge deck as slim as possible whilst also ensuring a minimum affect on the watercourse and quays, ZJA opted for a cable-stayed bridge that balances on a rotation point positioned in the river. The large bridge span of approximately 40 meters is held in place by a slender pylon with 40 meter high cables. The receding form of the cables is chosen in such a way that they least interfere with the view of the city, seen from the quay on the city center side. On the island side the high ornate pylon marks the new development of the island and the future cultural hotspot.