Quick quiz

I'm gearing up for a big series of posts, but while I get that ready, here's a quick quiz with a great prize*.

Can anyone identify the bridge I visited on holiday recently?

*There is no prize.

Where are they now? Part 4

Okay, I did three previous posts where I looked back at some of the bridge schemes I had covered in previous years, asking what had happened to them after I had mentioned to them. Here is the final such roundup, for now at least.

Kraków Footbridge

Now, here was a fine one. The winner of a 2006 design competition was much panned at the time, largely because its architect had designed something that couldn't possibly stand up. In November 2009, I noted the project had undergone an interesting metamorphosis, with the ultra-slender concept being substantially fattened up until a structure emerged which could actually cope with iniquitous gravity.

At the time, I commented that funding seemed uncertain, but there has clearly been enough money in the pot to treat the design very seriously indeed. There were a couple of papers at the recent Footbridge 2011 conference on the Kazimierz-Ludwinów bridge (to give it the proper title), both from the architect and the engineers. These showed clearly that considerable effort has gone into the structure's development, and I've used an image from one paper as the illustration (click to enlarge).

The engineer's paper reported that the bridge had a PLN 37m budget, but that the lowest tender received in 2009 was PLN 3m above that, leading to the scheme's cancellation. I'm not sure, however, whether that is the end of the story, or whether there is more life in this project yet.

St Patrick's Bridge, Calgary
The main bridge story in Calgary has been Santiago Calatrava's Peace Bridge, which has been a fiasco from beginning to end, except for the fact that the sorry tale seems so far to have no end in sight. I last discussed it extensively in April, reporting on delays caused by shoddy welding.

The footbridge scheme at St Patrick's Island was always seen as its better-organised neighbour, procured through an open design competition, and won in March 2010 by a bridge which obeyed the laws of structural common sense (pictured, design by Halsall and RFR).

That's pretty much all I can report. The bridge concept was approved by a city committee earlier this year, but I haven't seen any other news. The promoter's website suggests construction will start before the end of 2011, but I haven't seen any sign that construction tenders have been invited yet.

Four Mile Run
I was accused of being a little unkind to the US bridge design competition at Four Mile Run, when in November 2009, I used it as an example of "How not to run a bridge design competition". Amongst my complaints were the lack of any engineering information or justification for the structure; an opaque judging process; the lack of guidance as to what the promoters actually wanted; and the fact that no funding appeared to be in place to actually appoint a designer, let alone build the bridge.

In April 2010, the three contest winners were announced, with a proposal by Arup and Grimshaw coming top. I was too busy at the time to say much about the top three designs, all of which can be seen on the competition website. Since that announcement, the contest website has not been updated and I could find no further news, none of which is any surprise given how the competition was set up.

Since I was so remiss at the time, here are the three shortlisted designs:

Arup / Grimshaw / Scape

Olin / Buro Happold / Explorations Architecture / L'Observatoire International

Rosales + Partners / Schlaich Bergermann / Simpson Gumpertz and Heger

New Royal Victoria Dock contest
Very near the end of 2009, I discussed a "competition" being held for a proposed new crossing of Royal Victoria Dock in London, to improve pedestrian access to an exhibition centre during the 2012 London Olympics. Entrants were being sought via an odd sort of competitive interview where teams were set a design challenge and observed in how they responded to it. I never covered the subject again.

It turns out that the contest was won by Ian Ritchie Architects and Atelier One. They came up with several ideas, such as pontoon structures and opening bridges, as well as the one pictured here, described as a "water boatman" bridge, essentially a ferry or cable-car structure re-imagined in rotational rather than translational space. Apparently, all involved with the scheme agreed this was the option which would be taken forward, but pressure on Olympic project costs then led to the entire scheme being cancelled.

Paolo Soleri's Bridges

Tallbridgeguy mentioned this before me, but I had planned to feature it here anyway.

ArchDaily has a very interesting post with text and images of the American architect Paolo Soleri's bridge designs. Only one of his bridges has ever been built, a horrible footbridge at Scottsdale, and judging from the many other examples showcased, that may be no bad thing.

Soleri is a classic example of an architect whose sympathy for structure is superficial at best, with even his best known bridge design, a proposal featured in Elizabeth Mock's seminal The Architecture of Bridges, showing a thorough contempt for the imperatives of construction. Pictured above, this design was criticised by the Italian engineer Pier Luigi Nervi for "start[ing] from a purely formal conception  ... with the sub-conscious thought that the 'calculator' will manage to make it stand and the constructor will be able to build it."

Sometimes, this lack of embedment within a discipline can result in a design which shatters hidebound preconception and reminds us quite how trapped we often are within the habits of tradition. Many of Soleri's designs look lovely on paper, science fiction fantasies of what a bridge might be unconstrained by gravity or cost.

I'm particularly struck by his Ponte Lussemburgo proposal shown above, described as a "double cantilever inter-related three-dimensional structural members in ferro-cemento" (click on any image for a full-size version). Its sinewy curves are artistic rather than rational, but there's a family resemblance to Sergio Musmeci's astonishing Basento Viaduct.

I'm reminded that there are many histories of structural engineering yet to be written. Those few that do exist are partial and often hamstrung by linguistic limitations: the likes of Musmeci are rarely featured in books on bridge engineering. Beyond the bridge world and considering wider structural engineering, the English-speaking world often seems largely ignorant and unappreciative of great designers like Heinz Hossdorf, Ulrich Müther or Eladio Dieste.

If a history of the unknown would be welcome, a history of the unbuilt and unbuildable would be equally so, and Soleri's bridges would certainly merit inclusion.

We interrupt this usual service

Ok, I've been away, and it will take some to recover, catch up with work, and get back to posting.

Coming up when I get time:

• Reports on five or six more modern bridges from London's Docklands area
• Three or four bridges in Devon and Cornwall
• A review of Peter Lewis's book "Disaster on the Dee: Robert Stephenson's Nemesis of 1847"
• The bridges of two Spanish design firms, which were shown at Footbridge 2011
• A final batch of Where are they now? updates

Where are they now? Part 3

Here's another batch of bridges which I featured on this blog during 2009, and have barely mentioned since. What has happened to them? How many have survived the great black hole of indifference?

North Coast Harbor Bridge

In September 2009, I posted details of six alternative options for an opening footbridge in Cleveland, USA, designed by Miguel Rosales. Judging from a recent news story, the US$5.5m twin-bascule drawbridge option got the nod, and is due to be built starting in 2012. Aviation restrictions seem to have ruled out the city's preferred single-bascule option.

Sheffield Parkway

I revealed proposals from Scott Wilson for a new footbridge over the A630 Sheffield Parkway in October 2009 (pictured). This was a much cut-down design which had replaced Tim Nørlund and Ramboll's previous RIBA-competition winning entry, ditched due to lack of budget. I've tried to find out whether the bridge is still going ahead, but without any luck.

Copenhagen Harbour Bridge

October 2009 also saw the announcement of a winning design for a new opening footbridge in Copenhagen. The winner, from Studio Bednarski and Flint and Neill, is an unusual retractable bridge. The project looked to be well organised and well funded, but I haven't found any further information on progress. Does anyone know whether design is complete, or a contractor appointed?

Johnson Street Bridge, Victoria

I reported several times on the battle between historic bridge preservationists in Victoria, Canada, and their local council, who appeared determine to replace a rare heel-trunnion bascule bridge with a new structure designed by Wilkinson Eyre (pictured). The story rumbled on into 2010, leading up to a town referendum in November 2010 on whether to borrow the money required to build a new bridge. I didn't keep up with the news, and didn't report the referendum result: the council won by a significant margin. In January 2011, geotechnical investigations for the replacement bridge commenced. In March, defects found in a structural inspection led to the closure of the existing rail span. It is due to be demolished next year.

Preliminary design of the new bridge is currently underway, and due to be complete in Autumn this year. The overall project completion date is targeted as March 2016. The new bridge will be a highly impressive structure, and definitely one to watch.

The heritage campaigners have shifted their focus to arguing for retention of a rail route on the new bridge.

Galp Energia Bridge

I reported on the winner of a contest to design a new foot and cycle bridge in Lisbon (pictured). This was essentially a vanity competition, run to support a design biennale, with an attractive prize fund but no firm plans to actually build anthing. Unsurprisingly, I've not found any sign that the design went any further.

Okay, that will do for now. I will do a final batch of catch-ups from 2009 in a couple of weeks time.

Where are they now? Part 2

Okay, I've previously provided a catch-up on bridges which I mentioned in 2008 but never really followed up afterwards. This time, I'm moving on to 2009, and there are enough bridges from that year that I will probably split things across more than one post.

River Soar Footbridge

Another RIBA bridge design competition, with a cute little suspension footbridge as the winner in February 2009. As with so many schemes, it was part of a regeneration project. Ownership of the project passed from Leicester Regeneration to Leicester City Council, which I'm told then killed the regeneration scheme the bridge was part of, as a result of budget cuts. The regeneration body was absorbed into Prospect Leicestershire, which I believe is also now being closed. There's no "prospect" of this bridge being resurrected any time soon.

Parrot rating: 'E's not pinin'! 'E's passed on!

Metro West Liffey Bridge

The winners for both River Soar and for the design competition for the Metro West bridge, a light rail structure near Dublin, were announced in February 2009, and were superficially very similar designs, by the same design team, although on very different scales. Metro West is a 25km long rail scheme, one of several projects promoted in the Dublin area by Ireland's Rail Procurement Agency.

The companion Metro North scheme was granted approval to proceed in October 2010, and enabling works were due to commence earlier this year, with a contractor appointed in early 2012.

Metro West is behind that schedule, with its application for permission only submitted in October 2010, and no decision yet made, so far as I can see. The winning bridge is an expensive concept, and in the current climate it's hard not to see that it could fall victim to "value engineering" i.e. cost-cutting.

Parrot rating: He's probably pining for the fjords.

Williamette River Bridge, Portland

I first featured this bridge right at the very end of 2008, and then again in January 2009 in its guise as an innovative "wave" bridge proposed by architect Miguel Rosales. This proposal didn't last long: by March 2009, its excessive cost had seen it ditched, and a hybrid cable-stayed and suspension bridge design come to the fore. That was probably the last time I mentioned the project.

The hybrid option also didn't last long, with the transport authority opting for a conventional cable-stayed bridge in June 2009 (pictured above right). This was always the obvious choice, despite sniping from the sidelines from aesthetes possessed of at best a superficial understanding of bridge design. Construction of the cable-stayed design started on site on 1 July this year, due to complete by 2014.

Parrot rating: Remarkable bird, the Norwegian Blue! Beautiful plumage!

Rijnhavenbrug

The search began for a new opening bridge design in Rotterdam in 2007, with a competition winner announced in December 2008 (I only picked up on it two months later). This was a broadly conventional but not unattractive bascule bridge design, and at the time, they predicted a construction start in 2009, with the bridge open by 2011. So far as I can tell, it's behind schedule, but is actually going ahead, with construction work now commenced in February 2011.

Parrot rating: It nuzzled up to those bars, bent 'em apart with its beak, and VOOM!

Middle Rhine Valley

In April 2009, a winner was announced in the contest for a highway bridge near the Lorelei Rock between Mainz and Koblenz in Germany. The winning design was a pretty unusual venture, with trusses on only one side of the bridge deck, not something I've seen attempted anywhere else on a bridge of this scale or type. The location of the bridge is highly sensitive, being a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and it was unclear how far the scheme would be allowed to proceed. In July 2010, UNESCO finally came to a decision - in favour of the bridge. Campaigners still hope that the bridge will not proceed, but that instead a ferry may be adopted as the preferred option.

Parrot rating: He's not dead, he's, he's restin'!

Foryd Harbour Bridge

A couple of months later, June 2009, another bridge design competition, another winner. This time it was an opening cycle/pedestrian bridge at Rhyl in north Wales, won by a unique drawbridge design with twin fibreglass bridge decks. Planning consent was eventually secured in March this year. The project website states that offsite fabrication is expected to take place during 2011, with a site start next year.

Parrot rating: Oh yes, the, uh, the Norwegian Blue ... What's wrong with it?

Cityplace Footbridge, Toronto

I wrote about this not particularly out of interest in the bridge, but because of a design charrette which was run to try and raise interest in more "architectural" proposals for what was always a difficult structure spanning a number of railway tracks, connecting to the Cityplace residential development. The charrette's website no longer exists, but I featured a number of the designs here, as well as the original warren truss design which inspired the charrette into existence.

The final design (pictured) was made public in April 2010, and is a variation on the original Warren truss design with the trusses curved inwards towards each other - this significantly increases the size required for the truss web members, and hence the overal expense. Construction has commenced, with foundations installed earlier this year, and the bridge due to open by October.

Parrot rating (for the charrette proposals): 'E's kicked the bucket, 'e's shuffled off 'is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin' choir invisible!

Where are they now? Part 1

It occurred to me, as the number of posts on this blog recently passed the 400 mark, that I mention quite a few bridge schemes while they are in the news, and not thereafter. What happened to them? Have they expired and gone to meet their maker, or are they merely pining for the fjords?

So here they are, some of the bridges which blogging forgot. These were all covered here in 2008 - I will try and do a similar exercise for more recent bridges when I get time.

River Douglas Footbridge
This was one of the earliest schemes I covered, a RIBA bridge design contest. A shortlist was announced in August 2008, and a winner in October 2008. Two years ago, in July 2009, I noted that there seemed to be no further progress, which was no surprise as the competition had been run before any funding for a bridge was in place anyway.

The project's website has never been updated, but with the government's decision to abolish the North West Regional Development Agency in September 2010, Lancashire County Council's REMADE programme was also closed. This was the body ultimately promoting the bridge. I believe the replacement organisation is now the Lancashire Economic Partnership, who don't mention the River Douglas scheme on their website. I can't see it being revived in the current economic climate.

Parrot rating: Look, matey, I know a dead parrot when I see one, and I'm looking at one right now.

River Wear Crossing
This was a long time Pontist favourite. My last update was when the design was submitted for Planning Consent in January 2010. Consent was granted in April 2010, although I don't think I ever actually reported the fact. The bridge forms part of the £133m Sunderland Strategic Transport Corridor, and along with other major transport schemes was subject to a government moratorium in late 2010 as part of the comprehensive spending review.

Since then, Sunderland Council have reiterated their interest in proceeding with the scheme, most recently inviting people to an industry "market sounding" day in March this year. The Council has to submit a revised proposal to central government in September 2011, who are then due to decide in December whether the scheme will be funded or not.

Their funding package previously relied on £6m input from the regional development agency, One North East, who are being abolished. Central government were being asked for £98m, with Sunderland contributing £29m. They do say on the new project website that detailed design is complete and "significant cost savings have been identified". However, I can only speculate that if this proceeds, it will be by Sunderland agreeing to dig even deeper into their own pockets, leaving them highly vulnerable to the full impact of any cost over-runs.

Parrot rating: The only reason that it had been sitting on its perch in the first place was that it had been nailed there.

Ballsbridge - Dodder Footbridge

Another bridge design competition, this time run by Ireland's RIAI, and won in September 2008 by a slender girder span designed by Alan Dempsey, of NEX Architecture. The bridge was part of Mountbrook Group's Jurys Berkeley Court Redevelopment. This was refused planning consent in early 2009, with Mountbrook appealing in September 2010, and being turned down again in February this year. I'm amazed the developer persisted that long given the state of the Irish economy.

Parrot rating: This parrot is no more! He has ceased to be!

Dubai Smile

In November 2008, I featured this almost self-consciously wacky proposal to replace Dubai's temporary Floating Bridge built in 2007. Even by Dubai's megalomaniac standards it was an absurd design, and with the bursting of Dubai's economic balloon, the scheme has stalled. In late 2009, it was announced that the Floating Bridge would remain in use until 2014. I can't see this monstrosity getting built any time soon, if ever.

Parrot rating: He's not dead, he's, he's restin'!

New Islington Footbridge

The RIBA design contest here pre-dates this blog, with its winner decided in July 2007. It wasn't an especially expensive component of the wider regeneration scheme at New Islington, Manchester, but four years on there appears to be no movement. One of the funding agencies, New East Manchester, forecast an Autumn 2010 opening date, which came and went. The New Islington website says they are "just waiting for the funding to fall into place."

Parrot rating: No, 'e's stunned! Yeah! You stunned him, just as he was wakin' up!

Open thread

A mixture of lack of time on my part, and a lack of interesting bridge news, means it is all quiet on the pontist front, and likely to remain so for a little while, what with workload and Easter holidays on the way. I have a few posts in gestation but they will take some time to get ready.

Rather than whistling aimlessly and drumming fingers impatiently on the (virtual) table, here's an open thread.

Is there some bridge-related news I've missed?

A topic you'd like me to cover in the future?

Something you meant to comment on previously but never got around to?

Here's your chance: just click the Comment link at the bottom of this post!

How Britain bridged the world

If you're in the UK and you have access to the History Channel on television, you may like to note that the documentary How Britain Bridged the World is being shown on Wednesday 15th March at 8pm (also on History HD). It features the Skye Bridge, Millau Viaduct, Gateshead and London Millennium Bridges, and designers such as Sir Norman Foster, Michel Virlogeux and Keith Brownlie.

Manifestos for design

Over at Building Design's website, the excitingly-named "The Engineer's Blog" reports on an attempt to get engineers to write their own manifestos for design.

While manifestos are most often associated with politicians, they are also fairly common in art and architecture, with a tradition dating back at least to the Futurist call to "exalt aggressive action, a feverish insomnia, the racer’s stride, the mortal leap, the punch and the slap".

They are much less common in engineering design, presumably because a call to design objects "that work efficiently and don't injure their users" lacks a certain pizzazz.

The manifestos reported at The Engineer's Blog place their emphasis not on the product but on the process, asking for "connecting ideas" and to apply the "wisdom of crowds".

In the interests of applying the latter principle, I thought I would ask you, the reader, for your input.

What would a manifesto for bridge design or engineering look like? Have there actually been any?

Bridge of the month

There's already a Bridge of the Month competition which you should take a look at it if you haven't already.

Now there's a new Bridge of the Month newsletter, from Bill Harvey, the masonry arch bridge specialist perhaps best known for his Archie-M arch analysis software. The first issue is available online [PDF] and features Llanelltyd Bridge. It discusses the geometry of the arch, the difference between a three-centred and an elliptical arch, and the difficulty of modelling and hence analysing a bridge with irregular, distorted arch geometry.

You can subscribe to receive future newsletters at http://eepurl.com/ccAyL.

The privatisation of public space

I have a general rule that I won't post anything here that isn't related to bridges, however interesting it might be to me or my readers. However, I couldn't resist this one.

When I visited South Quay Footbridge recently, I was particularly struck by the way in which the corporate privatisation of the surrounding public realm had allowed the bridge's original context to be over-run with new buildings. While this spoiled the setting of the bridge, the feeling that you can only see it under the sufferance of security guards was more disturbing.

It's encouraging, therefore, to see that London's planning committee has been tasked to investigate the whole phenomenon of corporatisation of the public realm. A number of examples are cited by BDOnline which are far more depressing than the situation at South Quay.

I'm not sure what, if anything, bridge designers can do, other than to be aware of wider political and social concerns and try not to respond slavishly to the agenda of private bridge promoters.

I recall one case where a client wanted a bridge, but was anxious that it would create a sheltered space which undesirables could inhabit. Their preferred solution was simply to create a caged area below the bridge with security fencing.

The possibility of coming up with a more creative design solution (e.g. opening up the site so that the area was more visible, or consciously occupying it in the way that is frequently done with railway viaduct arches) didn't occur to them. The possibility of engaging with the community to address the wider issue (presumably, a lack of adult-free space where young people could meet and socialise) would have been even more remote.

I wonder whether anyone else has examples of bridge designs where there is a conflict between private and public benefit?

Back from Venice

I'm just back from a few days in Venice attending an IABSE Symposium. I've plenty of things to catch up on, but hopefully will get a chance soon to cover some of the bridges I visited, as well as thoughts on one or two of the papers and presentations which were particularly relevant to this blog.

Amongst many pleasant Venetian things, I also had time to visit an exhibition on the great Italian Engineer Pier Luigi Nervi, which runs at the Palazzo Giustinian Lolin until 14th November. The accompanying catalogue, Pier Luigi Nervi: Architecture as Challenge, is well worth seeking out. The exhibition moves on to MAXXI in Rome in December, and there are plans to bring it to London, Montreal, New York and elsewhere. I find the thought of seeing Nervi at MAXXI somewhat ironic, given his astounding ability to create beauty from the logic of gravity, whereas the MAXXI building's designer, Zaha Hadid, is an architect with a callow disdain for the same logic.

I also visited the Casso di Risparmio di Venezia, a bank building completed by Nervi in 1972, and an excellent chance to see one of his magnificent concrete waffle slab floors. I can't find a photo of the interior online, but there's one of the floor during construction which should give the general idea.

Once I get the Venetian reports done, I hope to get time to feature some of Nervi's bridge designs here. He was hardly noted as a bridge designer, but one of his most ambitious projects was for a crossing of the Straits of Messina, and his other bridge schemes should also be of interest.

Eight things you didn't know about this blog

Do you read this blog through an RSS newsfeed reader, or by an email subscription?

If so, I thought I'd remind you of what you miss if you never visit the blog's home page at http://happypontist.blogspot.com/.

On the right of the home page, you'll find my "profile" which includes my email address if you want to tell me bridge-related news.

You can see all my previous posts sorted by date ("Blog archive"), or subject ("Labels").

You'll also see "Related links", websites hopefully of interest to readers. Check out the Bridge of the month competition, or help out fellow bridge engineers at the Eng-Tips forum.

"My blog list" shows other bridge-related blogs which may be of interest, and you can see at a glance which ones have anything new to read.

If you don't use an RSS newsreader or are fed up opening the blog page regularly to check what's new, you can now subscribe by email to get a message every time there's a new post. Again, the link is on the right-hand side!

From the home page you can also search all my past posts (all 292 of them).

If you do read the blog at its home page, don't forget you can click on any image to see it at its full size. You can also comment on posts (please do!) by clicking the link which appears below each post.

Coming soon

I'm just back from a short holiday and conscious that I didn't line up any posts here in advance to tide things over while away. So, here's a very quick update on what is coming soon:

• a review of Peter Lewis's book "Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay"
• a bridge in Manchester missing from my recent series of posts
• a few bridges in Scotland

As ever, if you have bridge-related news that you think I might like to cover here, please get in touch!

Coming soon

What with an excess of work (and play), I'm conscious this blog isn't getting the attention it deserves. Nonetheless, I visited four bridges last week in an effort to keep my fellow pontists happy, and have a number of books I'm reading and would like to cover.

So, this is what is coming soon (time permitting, and in no particular order):

• Golden Jubilee Footbridges, Hungerford, London
• Millennium Bridge, Bankside, London
• Xstrata Treetop Walkway, Kew Gardens, London
• Sackler Crossing, Kew Gardens, London
• A review of Failed Bridges, by Joachim Scheer
• A review of Thomas Bouch: The Builder of the Tay Bridge, by John Rapley
• The opening of the Te Rewa Rewa Bridge, New Zealand (see videos at vimeo.com)

I'm also considering a series of posts on books about the bridges of Britain (by Jervoise, Wood, de Maré, Wright, Richards and possibly others), and how they reflect changing cultural attitudes to pontism.

Also, if you think I'm missing out on bridge news worth reporting here, please let me know!

Back in action

The Happy Pontist has returned from holiday, and normal service will resume shortly. Well, actually, it may take a little while, what with the backlog of everyday life and paid work that has built up.

While that happens, a few brief items ...

I'd not previously been aware of the T Evans Wyckoff Memorial Bridge in Seattle, opened late last year, but it has been pointed out to me in view of its resemblance both to Calgary's Peace Bridge, and to the similar Buro Happold bridges in Edinburgh and at Harthill.

The Peace Bridge itself has received a thumbs-up from Calgary's planning commission, notwithstanding concerns over exactly what shade of red it should be.

Elsewhere, a 40-foot bridge has been built in Liverpool from toy Meccano. And the world's longest suspension footbridge is proposed for Barnards Castle.

Happy 1st birthday!

I feel a little surprised at myself. It's 12 months today since I started this blog, embarked on this gephyrophilic voyage of discovery.

In that time, I've made over 125 posts altogether, including several on key topics such as bridge criticism, Swiss bridges, bridge competition debris and tensegrity bridges. I've written less than I had originally intended on new publications relevant to bridge design (books, standards etc), but there's only so much time available and I need to go with the topics that don't seem too much like hard work! I've also largely failed in my wish to visit and review more individual bridges.

So, what's coming in the next year?

I have a couple of bridge competition debris posts already lined up (for the London Millennium Bridge and River Soar Footbridge). There are a number of interesting bridges nearing completion (including the spectacular Kurilpa Bridge), and one or two designs yet to be made public (most notably Calatrava's design in Calgary). These will undoubtedly merit some further comment. I'll also be revisiting a post I made last year about the success rate of RIBA bridge design competitions - one year on, have they resolved their problems, are they a good way to get a bridge built yet?

However, the main thing I'd like is more discussion, either to suggest news to cover, or matters for future posts (email me at happypontist at googlemail dot com), or to debate any of the bridges or other issues I feature. So next time you read a post that you have an opinion on, please hit that "comments" link at the bottom of the post! More dialogue is what will keep this blog healthy for another 12 months.

Happy New Year

So, it's 2009, and what's new in the Happy Pontist's world?

First, I'd recommend paying a visit to Dark Roasted Blend, who put up an entertaining posting just before Christmas with some spectacular images of Japanese bridges and highway interchanges, mostly along the lines of the crazy maintenance nightmare pictured on the left (image courtesy of Ken Ohyama).

What do we have to look forward to in 2009?

There should be announcements of the winners in several bridge design competitions: River Liffey (result was due last month), River Soar (March), Foryd Harbour (May), Diglis Basin (no idea) and no doubt a number of others. Several of these haven't featured here at the Happy Pontist previously, largely because the authorities involved have kept the shortlists confidential and the publicity minimal.

A number of interesting new footbridges in the UK should open for use, including Forthside, Infinity and Tradeston. I feel fairly sure we haven't heard the last of the ever-more complicated sagas at Calgary and Sunderland either.

2009 should see the use of Eurocodes finally become mainstream for bridge design, although there's a very good chance that won't really happen until 2010. I don't think there will be many visible consequences to this in the short term (apart from a windfall for the providers of training courses), certainly not for the lay public.

For my part, the next post to appear here will be a review of an excellent book on a very singular bridge. I'm also considering a series of posts on criticism of bridge structures: how could you review a bridge itself? How would that be different from purely architectural criticism? Why is there so little public criticism of the engineering design of bridges?

All bridges great and ... well, not so great

Two very nice sources have just come out showcasing a range of often spectacular bridges, mostly great although one or two merely bizarre.

Deputy Dog has big images of "nine amazingly unique bridges you may not have seen". Some are amazing and very attractive: the delightful Henderson Waves bridge in Singapore, for example. Arrayed on the opposite side are the strangely totalitarian Octavio Frias de Oliveira Bridge and the Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge, both in Brazil, triumphs of muscular spectacle but certainly not of elegance.

Also just out is the brochure for the Footbridge 2008 Awards. This has photos of all the winners and runners-up, plus extensive write-ups giving more background detail. There are few if any duds in here, with the Simone de Beauvoir Footbridge, Svratka River Bridge and the Sackler Crossing amongst the best of those featured. These are generally more sober structures than showcased at Deputy Dog, but they don't suffer for that.