Zaha Hadid Architects has completed the Jiangxi River Bridge made of “dynamic curves” crossing the Jiangxi River in Chengdu, China.
ZHA’s new bridge was completed as the first structure in a series of bridges on Chengdu’s West Line Road.
The new 295-metre Chengdu West First Bridge crosses the Jiangxi River, a tributary of the Tuojiang River in China’s Sichuan province.
Zaha Hadid Architects designed a bridge that has a 185-metre central span and 55-metre secondary spans reaching to the riverbanks, marking the area with its dynamic curves.
Image © Arch Exist
The new Chengdu West First Bridge is used as a road, cycle and pedestrian bridge over the meandering Jiangxi River, enabling the West Line Road to become the western section of the Airport New Town ring-road and cycle route.
As ZHA explained, “as arches provide the most efficient bridge structure for spans between 120-250 metres, this symmetrical bridge is composed of two primary steel arches that rise from either side of the road deck.”
“As the steel arches rise, the arches lean together to touch tangentially at their crown, stabilising the structure from lateral wind forces,” the office added.
Image © Liang Xue
The sculptural appearance of the bridge is derived from the dynamic curvature of the bridge’s supporting piers and abutments that taper into its primary arches and road deck. Thanks to this, the bridge can be perceived as “a sculptural landmark” within Chengdu’s transport infrastructure.
ZHA was commissioned to build the bridge following the 2019 design competition, during the design process, Zaha Hadid Architects used structural analysis software on the design’s digital model.
Image © Arch Exist
The structural analysis examined all material self-weight, superimposed dead load and traffic live loading, as well as environmental considerations of wind and temperature, according to the firm, “this analysis ensured the structure and foundations have been designed to exceed the standards required for once-in-200-year weather events.”
With a height to span ratio of approximately 1:6, the bridge’s arches rise to 30 metres and are tied together at their base by longitudinal box girders that run along the edge of the road deck.
Image © Liang Xue
These ties resist the outward horizontal thrust of each arch and significantly reduce the horizontal loads on the bridge’s foundations.
Concrete abutments at either end of the bridge incorporate connectors linking the road deck to the West Line Road’s surface. With no foundations positioned in the Jiangxi River, intermediate piers are located beneath the springing points of the arches on each riverbank.
Image © Arch Exist
The bridge’s bored piles and abutments were constructed using conventional in-situ reinforced concrete techniques. The steel box sections of each arch were prefabricated in optimal dimensions for transportation and assembly on site.
The edge box girder sections within the road deck include the cable anchorages. These sections were also prefabricated and delivered in sections to be spliced together with on-site welding.
Image © Arch Exist
The bridge’s prefabricated plate cross girders were delivered to the site and connected to the edge girders by a bolted cover plate splice connection. The concrete road deck has been constructed from precast panels fixed to the cross girders by in-situ concrete stich pours.
Mobile cranes lifted all prefabricated steelwork and precast concrete elements within the bridge’s short assembly schedule.
Image © Liang Xue
The Chengdu West First Bridge crossing the Jiangxi River will open to the public on completion of the West Line Road.
Image © Arch Exist
Image © Arch Exist
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Image © Liang Xue
Site plan
Elevation
Section
Details
Anchorage detail
Zaha Hadid Architects and Block Research Group designed the 3D-concrete-printed Striatus bridge in Venice, which won the WA Award in the 40th Cycle.
ZHA’s another project is a 920-metre Danjiang Bridge in Taiwan, where construction work began in 2019. Once complete, the bridge will be the world’s longest single-mast, asymmetric cable-stayed structure.
Project team
Client: Chengdu International Aerotropolis Group Construction and Development
Architect: Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA)
ZHA Design: Patrik Schumacher
ZHA Project Directors: Charles Walker, Lei Zheng, Ed Gaskin
ZHA Project Architect: Han-Hsun Hsieh
ZHA Site Team: Lei Zheng, Han-Hsun Hsieh
ZHA Project Team: Jan Klaska, Lei Zheng, Marina Dimopoulou, Stratis Georgiou, Hung-Da Chien, Han-Hsun Hsieh, Martha Masli, Stella Dourtmes, Charles Walker, Ed Gaskin
Consultants
Executive Architect: China Southwest Architectural Design & Research Institute
Local Architect: China Southwest Architectural Design & Research Institute
Structural Engineers: Buro Happold, China Southwest Architectural Design & Research Institute
Quantity Surveyor: China Southwest Architectural Design & Research Institute
General Contractor: Sinohydro Bureau 7 Co., Ltd, China Huaxi Engineering Design and Construction
Environmental Consultant: Shenzhen Pengdaxin Energy Environmental Protection Technology
M&E Engineering: China Southwest Architectural Design & Research Institute
MEP: China Southwest Architectural Design & Research Institute
Transport Consultant: China Southwest Architectural Design & Research Institute
Fire Engineer: China Southwest Architectural Design & Research Institute
Landscape Consultant: Zaha Hadid Architects
Lighting Design: Zaha Hadid Architects
Site Supervision: China Huaxi Engineering Design and Construction
Top image: Jiangxi River Bridge. Image © Arch Exist.
All drawings © Zaha Hadid Architects.
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