21 October 2009

Kurilpa Bridge: Your Response

Kurilpa Bridge in Brisbane officially opens, to mixed reviews from our readers.

Last week saw the opening of the world’s largest tensegrity bridge, the Kurilpa Bridge in Brisbane.

Designed by Cox Rayner Architects with Arup the bridge uses the principle of tensegrity which produces a “synergy between balanced tension and compression components” creating a structure that is incredibly strong, yet light.

“The inherent strength in the tensegrity system meant that the deck could be very thin,” says lead architect Michael Rayner. “As river navigation requirements entailed the bridge needed to be 11 metres above the bank on the South Bank side, the 900mm deck enabled us to minimize the ramp down which otherwise would have eaten into Kurilpa Park, a significant historic meeting place for Aboriginal people.”

The 470-metre-long pedestrian bridge has been described by the Queensland Premier as “eye pleasing” and as a “world-first and exciting new landmark” for Queensland – meeting the needs of a rapidly growing city.

However, following an earlier article on indesignlive.com in December last year, we’ve received a flood of comments showing that the local response is certainly mixed. Read their comments below and feel free to join the conversation.

Hero image: Kurilpa Riverfire © Christopher Frederick Jones