The Millennium Bridge

Client: Dublin City Council
Completed: 20 December 1999

View computer model: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSPDHrtCwIY

The commission for the design of the Millennium Bridge was the outcome of an international competition organised by Dublin Corporation, which attracted 157 entries.  The new pedestrian crossing was designed to be lightweight, transparent, structurally daring and to sit comfortably into a prominent urban setting of considerable historical significance.

The 51m span was bridged using an arched portal frame, the large concrete haunches of which were contained within the hollow curved shell abutments.  Using this solution, all horizontal and vertical forces were transferred directly to the high level rock of the riverbed, rather than into the quay wall.  Also this resolution of forces enabled the truss to be made from very slender solid steel members, creating a sense of lightness and transparency.

As the busy quay roads could not be closed to traffic on a permanent basis, the bridge was designed from the outset to enable most of the construction work to be carried out from the riverside of the quay walls from a pontoon barge moored in the river, with a high degree of prefabrication.
              
Winner RIAI Award 2000
Winner RIBA International Award 2000
Winner CIF Construction Excellence Special Award  2000
Winner Inst. Str. Engineers Special Commendation 2000

Project team:
Seán Harrington, Noel Shortt.

*project completed by Howley Harrington Architects (Partner in charge Seán Harrington) and Price and Myers Engineers