Taplow Footbridge, UK

Project Description:

This slender steel arch bridge, with the arches partially below deck level so as to reduce the visual impact and allow bridge users to enjoy uninterrupted views up and down the river, provides pedestrian access to a new residential development by Berkeley Homes. The extreme slenderness of the triangular steel arches is achieved through the stabilising effect of the steel arms which connect them to the deck. These arms act as the hangers in the centre where they reach up to the arches and behave as struts towards the ends where they reach down. The deck itself is a concrete-filled shallow steel trough, and the parapets are simple vertical flat plates with a timber handrail.

The whole steel structure was assembled downstream, delivered to site by barge and placed in a single operation. Deck concreting and finishes were then completed, and the bridge was opened by the Prime Minister, Theresa May, in November 2018