Mainbrücke
In an international design two-stage competition for a new crossing of the river Main at Frankfurt/Main in Germany, the team Benthem Crouwel Architects/WTM Engineers was awarded the third prize.
Crossing of the river
The design task consisted of a refurbishment and re-integration of an existing listed steel bridge and the design for a new arched bridge with three lanes for motorised traffic, as well as bicycle and pedestrian facilities. The curved plan of the new bridge finishes the existing street layout on the north bank of the river.
The shape of the arch
With a span of 160 metres, the single arch-supported structure completes a hundred year-old ambition to jump the river, on this location just off the city centre and in direct vicinity to the new European Central Bank headquarters. The shape of the arch is fully determined by the forces in the bridge system and the necessity to perforate the bridge deck with the smallest possible impact to the passing flows from bank to bank.
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