Chords Bridge
|
Chords Bridge גשר המיתרים |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Coordinates | 31°47′20″N 35°12′00″E / 31.789°N 35.200°ECoordinates: 31°47′20″N 35°12′00″E / 31.789°N 35.200°E |
| Carries | Jerusalem Light Rail, pedestrians |
| Crosses | Shazar Boulevard |
| Locale | Jerusalem, Israel |
| Other name(s) | Bridge of Strings, Jerusalem Light Rail Bridge |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Side-spar cable-stayed bridge |
| Material | Steel, reinforced concrete |
| Total length | 360 metres (1,180 ft) |
| Width | 14.82 metres (48.6 ft) |
| Height | 118 metres (387 ft) |
| Longest span | 160 metres (520 ft) |
| Clearance below | 3.71 metres (12.2 ft) |
| Rail characteristics | |
| No. of tracks | 2 |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
| Electrified | Overhead lines |
| History | |
| Architect | Santiago Calatrava |
| Engineering design by | Santiago Calatrava |
| Construction start | 2005 |
| Construction end | 2008 |
| Construction cost | NIS 246 million |
| Inaugurated | June 25, 2008 |
| References | |
The Chords Bridge (Hebrew: גשר המיתרים, Gesher HaMeitarim), also called the Bridge of Strings or Jerusalem Light Rail Bridge, is a side-spar cable-stayed bridge in Jerusalem, Israel. The structure was designed by the Spanish architect and engineer Santiago Calatrava and is used by Jerusalem Light Rail's Red Line, which began service on August 19, 2011. Incorporated in the bridge is a glass-sided pedestrian bridge enabling pedestrians to cross from Kiryat Moshe to the Jerusalem Central Bus Station. The bridge, which cost about $70 million (NIS 246 million), was inaugurated on June 25, 2008.
Calatrava first visited Israel for the opening of an exhibition of his works in Haifa in 1997. During that visit, he was invited to design a pedestrian bridge in Petah Tikva, which was opened in 2005. He was invited to Jerusalem by city engineer Uri Shetrit and former mayor Ehud Olmert, who, according to Calatrava, challenged him to "do the most beautiful contemporary bridge".
Construction of the Chords Bridge began in 2005, with an estimated cost of NIS 129 million, far higher than the initial forecast of NIS 80 million.
The bridge was designed to add a defining visual element to the Jerusalem "skyline" at the entrance to the city, and to carry a light rail system, expected to solve some of the city's traffic problems. For Calatrava the bridge is "also the excuse to create a major plaza, to give character and unity to this delicate place".
Similar to Calatrava's Puente del Alamillo in Seville, Spain, the bridge makes use of an angled cantilever tower to absorb some of the load and reduce the number of cable stays needed. The bridge consists of a single pylon counterbalancing a 160-metre (170 yd) span with lengths of cables, making a dramatic architectural statement. While this is Calatrava's 40th bridge, it is the first he has designed to carry both train and pedestrian traffic.
...
Wikipedia