- One of only four finalists in the 2008 International Footbridge Awards.
- The bridge design and construction was completed in just five months, from start to finish.
In a race against time and the odds, a Queensland pedestrian bridge was built in just five months and on budget, despite acute labour and material shortages. The Macintosh Island Bridge in the Gold Coast, a high-rise resort city, is both aesthetically appealing and appropriate to its setting in a natural environment with an urban backdrop.
The stainless steel and coloured-concrete bridge was designed and built by a consortium including Arup as engineer. A tight schedule was the key to the client's selection of the bridge's cable-stayed construction method.
Why the haste? Every southern hemisphere spring, motoring fans in their thousands flock to Queensland’s Gold Coast to watch the four-day Indy 300.
One of the best views of the action is from Macintosh Island, and for more than a decade, race-goers would cross over to the island via a narrow timber suspension bridge – a well-loved local landmark. When that bridge closed for safety reasons, local and state authorities decided to replace it with a wider and longer bridge. Not only would this new bridge have to be at least as attractive and special as the original, it would also have to be ready for the Indy. The consortium sprang into action and met its deadline.
The bridge, which was built in 2007, has been welcomed enthusiastically by the local community and can be considered a remarkable success story.
Share: