Cable-stayed walkways are particularly spectacular at reasonable prices, for use with very large spans (141 m. and 94 m. in our case). They are also particularly suitable for straight and curved plan layouts and for controlling the geometric play that can be obtained with the stay cables. When the footbridge plan is curved and the pile is inclined, as in this case, the resulting formal and aesthetic result is very attractive. This effect is enhanced at night with lighting arranged in the direction of the stays and piles, resulting in a curtain of light. Combine this with adequate floor lighting and the use of an attractive color for the suspenders and piles and the result is a great effect, very suitable for cases like the present one. <\/p>\n
The plan adopted for the footbridge is curved and the width is only 4.5 m. It is also cable-stayed from an intermediate pile, located at the river’s edge. The developed length of the footbridge is 235 meters, 141 meters over the riverbed and 94 meters in the flood span. The axis is curved with a radius of 230 meters for the first 188 meters from abutment 1, and straight for the remaining 47 meters, close to the left bank. This deviation from the original constant radius route is necessary so that the stays near abutment 2 do not encroach on the pedestrian traffic zone. <\/p>\n
The panel is completely metallic, with a box section and a 1 m edge, with variable thicknesses depending on the zones. It hangs from a single edge (the inside), which improves visual perception by eliminating the presence of suspenders in the user’s field of vision. This arrangement generates a torsion problem that is solved by means of the curvature in plan, transforming this torsion into bending stresses thanks to the structural coupling, which allows for an efficient behavior of the assembly. <\/p>\n
The pile, 90 m long and 30\u00b0 inclined, has a variable circular cross-section and is internally stiffened. The stay cables are divided into two types: main ones that support the deck (46 cables of different diameters) and rear ones that stabilize the tower to prevent it from overturning. <\/p>\n
The abutments are solid reinforced concrete with an embedded deck, supported on micropiles, while the tower is founded on large diameter piles and a large pile cap designed to ensure stability against overturning.<\/p>\n
The walkway incorporates functional and aesthetic elements such as a wind screen, integrated lighting in railings and ornamental lighting of the whole. The construction is based on provisional supports, assembly in sections and subsequent tensioning of the stay cables. <\/p>\n
The structural calculation is performed with a spatial model considering all relevant actions (self-weight, overloads, wind, temperature), including limit state analysis and dynamic verification to ensure user comfort.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>