Colourful London Olympics bridge completed

The Central Park footbridge spans over the River Lea at a focal point on London’s Olympic Park between the main stadium and the aquatics centre. It features both permanent and temporary elements to integrate Games and legacy use.

Heneghan Peng Architects and Adams Kara Taylor Engineers won a design competition in 2007 and the construction of their winning bridge design has now been completed. The Central Park bridge was built by Lagan Construction from Belfast, with the complex steelwork fabricated by Waagner-Biro.

In its permanent form, the crossing will consist of two parallel footbridges linked by a central walkway, which in plan will create a ‘Z’ shape. The structures, which cross the River Lea, are is clad in mirror-finish stainless steel.

For the Olympic Games, a temporary deck has been placed between the permanent spans of the bridge to increase its width. The temporary deck has been covered with a multi-coloured rubber surface inspired by the London 2012 brand colours.

ODA Director of Infrastructure and Utilities Simon Wright said: “With the main Olympic Park venues in place we are now seeing the completion of crucial new infrastructure to help stitch the site together and create an open and accessible new park for London. With its colourful Games-time design and striking architecture in legacy, the Central Park bridge creates a new focal point in the Olympic Park for spectators and future generations to enjoy.”

After the Games, the temporary bridge surface will be removed to create new links from the Olympic Park concourse level down to the river tow paths and Carpenters Lock, a 1930s historic structure on the River Lea owned by British Waterways.

The permanent structural elements of the bridge will be further revealed with its mirror-finished stainless steel cladding designed to reflect the sunlight off the water in the River Lea. A total of 125t of steel was used in the construction of the Central Park bridge, which has a Games-time width of 58m, with the two main permanent sections spanning 30m in length.