Pedestrian bridges in Hong Kong

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The pedestrian bridges in Hong Kong form a cityscape-defining network of footpaths between buildings and for crossing streets.

Bridge over Yueng Uk Road in Tsuen Wan

history

Schematic representation of the Central Elevated Walkway , 2016

As the city grew in the 1960s, the idea of ​​separating road traffic from pedestrian routes arose. On the one hand, this should create more traffic safety, on the other hand, more efficient traffic flows should also be achieved. Increasingly, pedestrian bridges were built with which important roads could be crossed. The first bridge of this new design was built near Victoria Park in 1963 and crossed Leighton Road. Also in 1963 the first pedestrian bridge was ⊙ with air conditioning built. It spans Chater Road in the Central district and connects the Hotel Mandarin Oriental with the Prince's Building .

Initially it was mostly pure crossings, but since the 1970s more and more complex bridge systems have been developed that connect important buildings with one another. The Central Elevated Walkway ( 中 區 行人 天橋 系統 ) between office buildings and shopping centers in Central is outstanding . In 1972 the high-rise Jardine House (under the name Connaught Center ) was completed and connected to buildings in the area by bridges. Alexandra House and the General Post Office followed later . Today the bridge system extends, among other things, over Two IFC to the Hong Kong Macau Ferry Terminal and also includes the MTR stations Central , Hong Kong and Sheung Wan as well as the landing stages of the Central Ferry Piers . The bridge complex in Central is linked to a similar system in Admiralty . This makes it possible to cover a distance of more than two kilometers on pedestrian bridges. The well-known Central Mid-Levels Escalator can also be reached via the bridge network.

In the New Territories , pedestrian bridges are mostly located near MTR stations and sometimes connect them to shopping centers or residential buildings.

The public footbridges are managed by the Hong Kong Government's Highways Department . According to official figures, there were 832 such bridges in December 2017, 211 of them on Hong Kong Island , 145 in Kowloon and 476 in the New Territories . An advisory committee deals with aesthetic issues of bridges and their integration into the surrounding buildings.

material

Many pedestrian bridges that were built in the 1960s were made of wood. Because of the high maintenance requirements, they have now been replaced by bridges made of steel and concrete. Concrete is particularly suitable as a building material in the high humidity prevailing in Hong Kong, which is why bridges are usually built from this material. Today steel is mainly used for bridges with a long span.

Trivia

Picnic on the Central Elevated Walkway

Picnics on the pedestrian bridges are a common sight on Sundays and public holidays . Many housemaids , often from Indonesia or the Philippines , meet on the bridges on their days off.

In 2012, the photographer JR covered the roof of a pedestrian bridge in Connaught Road ⊙ , near the IFC, with 16 black and white portraits.

photos

literature

Jonathan D. Solomon, Clara Wong, Adam Frampton: Cities Without Ground. A Hong Kong Guidebook . ORO Editions, Hong Kong 2012, ISBN 978-1-935935-32-2 (English).

Web links

Commons : Pedestrian Bridges in Hong Kong  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Footbridges and Subways of Hong Kong. (pdf) Highways Department, December 2017, accessed November 25, 2018 .
  2. ^ The First Footbridge and Vehicular Bridge in Hong Kong. Highways Department, January 31, 2018, accessed November 25, 2018 .
  3. ^ A b Edward Leung: Pedestrian Footbridge System, Central. docomomo Hong Kong, accessed on November 25, 2018 .
  4. ↑ a b c Christopher DeWolf: Many bridges to cross. In: China Daily . July 6, 2011, accessed November 16, 2018 .
  5. ↑ a b Alice Miquel: Slow Hong Kong: The City in 693 Footbridges. Zolima Citymag, January 4, 2016, accessed November 25, 2018 .
  6. ↑ Alex Maeland: JR Launches His “INSIDE OUT” Project in Hong Kong. Hypebeast, September 18, 2012, accessed November 26, 2018 .