We are excited that the planning of the bicycle and pedestrian crossing over the river Neckar in the southern German city of Heidelberg is progressing. By a majority, the municipal council decided last week to commission our team (schlaich bergermann partner, LAVA – Laboratory for Visionary Architecture and Latz + Partner) with the further planning services up to the detailed design.
Andreas Keil, partner at schlaich bergermann partner and responsible for the design, was particularly pleased with this decision: “The new bridge will not only create a well-functioning bike path and pedestrian connection but will also challenge the technical possibilities due to its elaborate and slender design. With its subtle distinctiveness and slender silhouette, the new crossing will enrich the space and elevate the city’s bridge legacy into the 21st century.”
Carl Zillich, Curatorial Director at IBA Heidelberg, also expressed his delight about the final decision: “This bridge is more than just a piece of technical infrastructure for the transformation of transportation. It will help to finally connect the ‘Campus Im Neuenheimer Feld’ to the Neckar and to redevelop the ‘Gneisenauplatz’ in the western part of the city as a public green space. Thus, an appropriate sign of ‘Baukultur’ will be established at Heidelberg’s city gates.”
The kick-off meeting with the civil engineering office in Heidelberg is planned for next Wednesday. Construction of bridge is expected to start in 2023.
