Newport City footbridge | |
---|---|
Coordinates | 51°35′13″N2°59′25″W / 51.5869°N 2.9902°W |
Carries | cyclists and pedestrians |
Crosses | River Usk |
Locale | Newport |
Official name | Newport City footbridge |
Maintained by | Newport City Council |
Characteristics | |
Design | Cable-stayed bridge |
Width | Deck 16 feet (4.9 m) Max. 49 feet (15 m) |
Clearance below | 13+1⁄2 feet (4.1 m) at high tide |
History | |
Opened | 12 September 2006 |
Location | |
Newport City footbridge [1] is a pedestrian/cycle bridge over the River Usk in the city of Newport, South Wales.
The bridge links the east bank of the river in the vicinity of Rodney Parade stadium to University Plaza on the west bank. It was the first major public project in Newport Unlimited's plans to regenerate the city.
It won a British Constructional Steelwork Association award; the 2007 George Gibby Award from the Institution of Civil Engineers in Wales; a Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors award for regeneration in Wales, and a highly commended from Wales Business Insider for their best regeneration project of 2007.
The bridge features two A-Frame masts, which support the bridge from the west bank. The masts are positioned on a shared foundation and anchored at ground level by two 4+3⁄4-inch (120 mm) diameter cables that are connected the tips of the masts. The forward mast is 262 feet (80 m) long and the back mast is 226 feet (69 m) long. Because of the angle at which the masts are positioned, the bridge stands at 229 ft (70 m) above ground. The deck is 16 ft (4.9 m) wide and 13+1⁄2 ft (4.1 m) above water at high tide. The bridge has a clear span of 476 feet (145 m).
The dramatic crane structures were designed as a deliberate and symbolic link to the site's earlier use as trading wharves—but with a modern twist. The deliberate location of the main structures on the west bank means that the vast majority of the construction work was kept away from the houses on the east bank, while avoiding impact on the local river ecology.
The bridge foundations are supported by thirty 35+1⁄2 inches (900 mm) diameter CFA (continuous flight auger) piles varying in length. The bridge structure is suspended on five ground anchors which are drilled 98 ft (30 m) into the ground.
Approximately 600 m3 (780 cu yd) of concrete were used in the bridge foundations.
The masts are made from sheet steel which was rolled into 'cans'. These were then welded together to produce the tubes for the masts.
The front mast is 2.5 m (8.2 ft) in diameter and was delivered to site in nine sections. It weighs approximately 275 long tons (279 t ).
The back mast is 1.75 m (5.7 ft) diameter and was delivered to site in seven sections. It weighs approximately 177 long tons (180 t).
The bridge deck is made up of five sections.
The deck units were installed in sequence and then welded together. Details of the deck units are shown below:
A half mile (800 m) of cable is used to support the bridge, varying in diameter from 2 in to 4¾ in (to 50 to 120 mm), made by Bridon Ropes of Doncaster.
The main masts for the bridge were erected in the week commencing 1 May 2006 using the largest crane in the UK. [3] It was officially opened on 12 September 2006 (also the centenary of Newport Transporter Bridge) and is the ninth crossing of the Usk in the city.
As part of the city's "Big Splash" festival, on 30 August 2010, 45-year-old French circus star Olivier Roustan from Toulouse, performed the highest ever wirewalk in Europe, along the top cable of the Newport City Footbridge. [4]
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridges, which lack vertical suspenders, have a long history in many mountainous parts of the world.
A cable-stayed bridge has one or more towers, from which cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, normally forming a fan-like pattern or a series of parallel lines. This is in contrast to the modern suspension bridge, where the cables supporting the deck are suspended vertically from the main cable, anchored at both ends of the bridge and running between the towers. The cable-stayed bridge is optimal for spans longer than cantilever bridges and shorter than suspension bridges. This is the range within which cantilever bridges would rapidly grow heavier, and suspension bridge cabling would be more costly.
The River Usk rises on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain, Wales, in the westernmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Initially forming the boundary between Carmarthenshire and Powys, it flows north into Usk Reservoir, then east by Sennybridge to Brecon before turning southeast to flow by Talybont-on-Usk, Crickhowell and Abergavenny, after which it takes a more southerly course.
A crane is a machine used to move materials both vertically and horizontally, utilizing a system of a boom, hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves for lifting and relocating heavy objects within the swing of its boom. The device uses one or more simple machines, such as the lever and pulley, to create mechanical advantage to do its work. Cranes are commonly employed in transportation for the loading and unloading of freight, in construction for the movement of materials, and in manufacturing for the assembling of heavy equipment.
Newport is a city and county borough in Wales, situated on the River Usk close to its confluence with the Severn Estuary, 12 mi (19 km) northeast of Cardiff. With a population of 145,700 at the 2011 census, Newport is the third-largest principal authority with city status in Wales, and seventh most populous overall. Newport became a unitary authority in 1996 and forms part of the Cardiff-Newport metropolitan area, also known as the Cardiff Capital Region. Newport was the site of the last large-scale armed insurrection in Great Britain, the Newport Rising of 1839. The population grew considerably between the 2011 and the 2021 census, rising to 159,587, the largest growth of any unitary authority in Wales.
Torre de Collserola is a uniquely designed tower located on the Tibidabo hill in the Serra de Collserola, in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was designed by the architect Sir Norman Foster and by the Spanish civil engineers Julio Martínez Calzón and Manuel Julià Vilardell. This emblematic tower was built in 1991 by the construction company Cubiertas y MZOV S.A. for the 1992 Summer Olympics. It features a pod for floor space like many towers but uses guy wires for lateral support like a mast. Mainly used as a TV and radio transmitter, this futuristic design provides the highest viewpoint over the city. The top antenna reaches 288.4 m (946 ft) and the top of the pod, which has thirteen floors, reaches 152 m (499 ft). The highest point of this tower is the highest place one could be in the city of Barcelona. The tenth floor of the pod is open to the public.
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Newport city centre is traditionally regarded as the area of Newport, Wales bounded by the west bank of the River Usk, the George Street Bridge, the eastern flank of Stow Hill and the South Wales Main Line. Most of the city centre is contained within two conservation areas: the central area and the area around Lower Dock Street. Most of the city centre is located in the Stow Hill district.
David Rowell & Co. was a company based in Westminster, London that fabricated wrought iron and wire rope, built suspension footbridges, and structural steel frame buildings. They were established in 1855 and closed in 1970.
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