萬里區員潭溪跨橋

Located in Wanli District, New Taipei City, the site of the project constitutes a strategic access point to the Jinshan-Wanli Cycling Route and the local beach area. It is adjacent to what used to be a parking lot for trucks. Anyway, the utilization rate of this parking was low and the location corresponded to a place in the middle of long span where no access to the coastline was available. Moreover, the site is environmentally rich since surrounded by beautiful mountain views and coastal forests that represent a relevant habitat for black eagles. A number of migratory aquatic organisms, such as estuarine crabs and fishes, live here, too. So, the site offers a crucial spot for the development of local landscape and its accessibility. Within the framework of a large scale plan now under implementation, that targets the strengthening of landscape and the improvement of public space, the design of a pedestrian bridge across Yuantan river, connecting the coastal speedway and the coastline represents the core mandate of the project. Anyway, the bridge aims not only at the spatial connection of this large scale mobility and landscape system. It also aims at creating the opportunity for a connection with the river, an overlooking point, and the creation of a gateway to the coast working on a subtle aestheticization of maritime themes. Built structures are intentionally oversimplified and sturdy, finished in hammered concrete fashion. While this provides a feeling of ‘roughness’ that well suits the coastal landscape experience, the displacement of the bridge and its architectural elements is carefully studied. The deck of the bridge is slightly elevated to provide a better viewpoint to the landscape; access ramps to the bridge are then dislocated to allow specific views of landscape highlights; a staircase to access the riverside is inserted into one of the two bridge buttress structures, so to provide the opportunity of interaction with the fresh water; the one and only pillar of the bridge is shaped in a monumental fashion to resist possible flood waters but also provide enough ‘decorum’ to qualify the natural riverside as a public space; the design of the one and only light pole memorialize the local light-fishing system while the design of the fence confronts construction challenges with shapes and materials that suggest fishing nets and cages. Through shape, materiality, and details the bridge expands the beach experience of coastal landscape and reminds that the beach can be reached through the bridge along the trail.