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GO Pedestrian Bridge
GO Pedestrian Bridge
Pickering, Canada
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Other Projects by Teeple Architects
GO Pedestrian Bridge
Pickering, Canada
Firm
Type
STATUS
Built
YEAR
2018
BUDGET
$10M - 50M
Photos
This landmark 820-ft-long (250m) landmark pedestrian bridge is one of the longest enclosed foot bridges in the world, traversing 6 railway lines and 14 lanes of traffic across Highway 401, the busiest highway in North America. The bridge connects the Town of Pickering, one of the fastest growing communities in Canada, to its busy GO Transit hub, part of a regional network of trains and buses servicing the Greater Toronto Area in Southern Ontario. Due to its location at the threshold between the Cities of Toronto and Pickering, the bridge serves a striking marker of entry into both cities and a symbol of innovation across the metropolitan region.
A sculptural perforated metal scrim acts as a glimmering shading device during the day and as a glowing line of coloured light over the highway at night made possible by programmable LED lighting, providing vibrant changing light patterns. Inspired by the perpetual dynamism of highway traffic and railway lines, the bridge’s streamlined curvilinear metal enclosure was digitally modelled and refined in 3D to capture the sense and vision of speed through surface modelling. Considerations were made to balance formal aesthetics with maximizing views for the pedestrians, minimizing possible distractions to drivers (from either material glare or pedestrians), functional openings for stairs, and material bending limitations of metal panels.
The design was developed using Building Information Modelling (BIM) for construction documentation and construction coordination. Coordinating with the engineering teams three-dimensionally through BIM allowed the design team to work efficiently to develop a structural support system for the formally complex metal scrim using standard construction components. The fully digital 3D design and documentation process allowed the metal scrim model data to inform the shape of steel framing, simplifying what would have otherwise been onerous structural design and fabrication process. Full BIM documentation of the cladding and structural systems also minimized onsite interferences, allowing sections of the bridge to be constructed offsite, then efficiently assembled onsite. The result is an example of the potential for architecture and thoughtful collaborative digital methodology to elevate the practice of infrastructure building.
A sculptural perforated metal scrim acts as a glimmering shading device during the day and as a glowing line of coloured light over the highway at night made possible by programmable LED lighting, providing vibrant changing light patterns. Inspired by the perpetual dynamism of highway traffic and railway lines, the bridge’s streamlined curvilinear metal enclosure was digitally modelled and refined in 3D to capture the sense and vision of speed through surface modelling. Considerations were made to balance formal aesthetics with maximizing views for the pedestrians, minimizing possible distractions to drivers (from either material glare or pedestrians), functional openings for stairs, and material bending limitations of metal panels.
The design was developed using Building Information Modelling (BIM) for construction documentation and construction coordination. Coordinating with the engineering teams three-dimensionally through BIM allowed the design team to work efficiently to develop a structural support system for the formally complex metal scrim using standard construction components. The fully digital 3D design and documentation process allowed the metal scrim model data to inform the shape of steel framing, simplifying what would have otherwise been onerous structural design and fabrication process. Full BIM documentation of the cladding and structural systems also minimized onsite interferences, allowing sections of the bridge to be constructed offsite, then efficiently assembled onsite. The result is an example of the potential for architecture and thoughtful collaborative digital methodology to elevate the practice of infrastructure building.
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