GORK JOURNAL

Retractable Bridge

Photo: Rasmus Hjortshøj
Architecture: Realdania By & Byg
Project: Lille Langebro
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark


Yes, there’s no mistake in the title. Today’s topic is a pedestrian bridge with a rather unusual structure. The thing is, the mechanism of the bridge opens not upwards, as most bridges in Saint Petersburg do, but sideways.

When I studied the project and reached its "folded" state, at first I thought it was some strange stage of construction, but then I saw the docking seams from the top view, and everything fell into place. A brilliant engineering solution! I outlined the direction of the openings on the top view.

Besides the unusual mechanism, it’s worth noting how organically such a sizable structure fits into the surrounding space. Here we see the bridge used for its intended purpose, integrated into the urban environment, with bike paths, and beautiful floating geometry. A delight for the eyes of urbanists and another great example for my collection of unusual bridge constructions.
Architecture Photo