UK's Flint & Neill wins bid to plan Dublin bridge
UK consultants have been hired to work on a new bridge in the shadow of the planned U2 Tower in Dublin’s Docklands.
The multi-million euro link between the Docklands and Ringsend will accommodate public transport only and will feature two bus lanes and two footpaths. A cycle lane and space for a possible future Luas extension are also proposed.
The Flint & Neill Partnership in London has won the 340,000 euro contract to draw up a preliminary design of the bridge.
The consulting engineers have already worked on bridges and viaducts in Britain, Sweden, Finland, China and Hong Kong.
They were also involved in the design of the roof of Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport and a Baha’I Temple in Delhi, India.
Chongming Bridge in Shanghai, Sweden’s Malmo Swing Bridge and the Forth Road Bridge in Scotland are among the landmark structures they have worked on.
The multi-storey U2 Tower, due to be built in 2009, will house apartments and a penthouse recording studio for the supergroup.
The Docklands bridge will straddle about 330 feet of water where the Dodder River meets the Grand Canal and will connect Sir John Rogerson’s Quay and Britain Quay to Sean Moore Road in Ringsend.
The structure will also provide a link with Ringsend Park for residents of new and existing apartments around Grand Canal Dock.
Plans for the bridge were included in the Dublin City Council Development Plan and the Dublin Docklands Development Authority Master Plan.
The structure is expected to have an opening mechanism to allow boats to move between the Liffey, the Dodder and the Grand Canal.
Grand Canal Dock is the starting point for vessels navigating as far as the Shannon River in Co Offaly.
A total of 10 international firms submitted bids for the contract to the roads and traffic department of the city council.
