When is a bridge more than a crossing?

We collaborated on this competition entry with the landscape architect Lily Jencks Studio and structural engineers Davis Maguire. Connecting The Meadows in Salford to newly regenerated districts on the Manchester side of the River Irwell, the bridge links two very different contexts.

'We wanted to allow the bridge to assume the nature of the two environments it was connecting'

We looked to reflect the notion of a bridge being more than just a crossing. We proposed that trees, shrubs and vegetation would grow down a central spine over the river, extending the leafy meadows on the Salford side towards the denser Manchester street grid. On this more urban landing point we proposed a new public plaza.