In Eindhoven pedestrians and cyclists can use the Hovenring, a floating bicycle roundabout above the busy Heerbaan. The striking bridge designed by Delft instead of Delft forms a new landmark for the City of Light with its slender bridge deck, imposing pylon and diameter of 72 meters. Even in the evening, because then the bridge is spectacularly illuminated.
The steel bridge floats like a flying saucer above the Heerbaan / Meerenakkerweg intersection (Heistraat) and marks the entrance to Eindhoven, Veldhoven and the Eindhoven new-build neighborhood Meerhoven with a striking pylon. Previously there was a single-storey roundabout here. With a view to the development of Meerhoven, this did not work anymore.
Because the municipality did not want bicycle tunnels for traffic technical reasons and no ground crossing, instead of Delft it was asked to think about a possible solution. Soon a circular pylon bridge proved the optimum between route and form.
The bridge consists of a 70 meter high pylon, 24 tiers and a circular bridge deck and is made entirely of steel. A ballast ring is attached to the bridge deck on the inside. The turrets are placed exactly on the balance point of the bridge deck and ballast ring, so that the bridge is in balance. The M-shaped support points at the level of the four extensions also provide this.
One of the challenges in the design process was the spatial integration of the ramps. The available space was limited by existing buildings and infrastructure, but the ramps leading to the roundabout still had to be pleasant for cyclists. That is why the intersection was built deeper, so that the height difference for cyclists and pedestrians was reduced by a meter and a half. In addition, the design and construction process experienced many technical challenges. During construction the tills were trembling. In the meantime the tether attachments have been replaced and silencers have been installed with which the vibrations have been remedied.
In line with Eindhoven's identity as a city of light, the lighting architects of Delft instead also created a lighting design for the Hovenring. One of the most important elements of this is the lighting integrated in the circular deck. The space between ballast ring and bridge deck is provided with aluminum strips, translucent sheet material and fluorescent lighting, so that a light ring is visible at night. In addition to the decorative light ring, the bridge is equipped with functional LED lighting in the hand line. This provides an illuminated bridge deck and sufficient light at eye level, so that users feel safe on the Hovenring. Eight lamps on tension cables between the bridge deck and the pylon and twelve lamps on the ballast ring illuminate the intersection.
#floatingroundabout #engineering #art #human #photographic #steemit #eindhoven #netherlands #europe #holland #nederland #dutch