Structural Steel Design Awards 2019 - Merit

Linking the railway station and town centre, a pair of new footbridges provide a unique ‘gateway’ to Telford.

The overhead structure of the tied arch/trusses allows the suspended deck to be extremely thin. Glazed sides and an internal GRP soffit complete the clean uncluttered feeling. A stretched tensile fabric roof covering tapers down to a fish tail detail at each end, giving the bridges their distinctive appearance.

A complex and challenging project built on a small and restricted site crossing an important rail link and two busy inner ring roads has delivered an outstanding piece of functional urban architecture.

'Architect'

Nicoll Russell Studios

'Structural Engineer'

Jacobs

'Steelwork Contractor'

S H Structures Ltd

'Main Contractor'

Balfour Beatty

'Client'

Telford & Wrekin Council

Judges' comment

These new footbridges provide a modern sleek welcome to visitors arriving from the railway station. Crossing busy roads and a railway line on a tight site presented major challenges, but disruption was kept to a minimum and the judges were impressed with the team’s efforts to engage and involve the public, resulting in a proud sense of ownership by the local community.