They are architectural masterpieces, connect where others divide, make us truly mobile – and yet we pay far too little attention to them: city bridges. With the May issue of G+L, they are now receiving the attention they deserve. We take a look at the most important city bridges in the world and discuss the most exciting bridge projects currently underway in German-speaking countries, including, of course, the much-discussed “Green Bridge” by RKLW Architektur + and JLL in Düsseldorf.
In April, SZ Online ran the headline “The bridge of rage” about the traffic trial on Dresden’s “Blaues Wunder” bridge. The city wanted to test whether a dedicated cycle path would work on the iconic bridge until June. Until now, cyclists had to use the sidewalk. To create space for cyclists, a car lane was removed. The impact on motorized traffic on the first few days was enormous. There were major delays to bus services and the Dresden Chamber of Crafts intervened. The head of the chamber, Jörg Dittrich, declared the attempt a failure after a week. Dresden City Hall agreed shortly afterwards, after less than two weeks of testing, and announced the end of the pilot project by the end of April.
Criticism of the project was very loud right from the start. Dresden’s transport mayor Stephan Kühn (Greens) was described as an “ADFC lobbyist” and accused of pursuing an anti-car policy. There was probably also a death threat against Kühn in connection with the project. The state security service took up the investigation.
The case in Dresden shows: Bridges are an essential component of urban infrastructure and play a crucial role in addressing mobility needs. Bridges are more than just structural connections between two points. They are architectural symbols that connect, overcome, but also enable. Their planning, design, conversion or renovation requires a deep understanding of the local conditions and the needs of the local urban society. However, the public only notices all of this when something is not working – or is working differently than before. And that is why we in this G+L are very happy to deal with a topic that somehow unites us all: Bridges.
German projects at various stages of planning are featured, including the Green Bridge in Düsseldorf. We also talk to experts from the worlds of business and planning about today’s challenges in bridge construction and take a look at recent international projects by various architectural firms.
In the process, we learned that you really don’t have to be a nerd to think bridges are great.
In our first part of the city special, we took a closer look at tunnels.