Swing Bridge for the Formula 1 Race Course on Valencia Harbour, Spain

The city of Valencia (Spain) has undergone considerable development over the last decade. The city harbour has taken on great relevance as a commercial and sports harbour following the hosting of the 32nd America's Cup in 2007, and in August 2008 a new event will be held in the city: the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Europe which will be held on a new street circuit in the harbour area linked to an extension of the city. The symbol of the street circuit is a swing bridge that will connect the east and west transversal docks at the entrance to the inner harbour. The horizontal swing movement of the bridge is due to urban and “architectural” requirements. The bridge environment, the presence of the Foredeck Building by David Chipperfield and the rest of the America's Cup facilities, invalidates the use of the bascule solution. A bascule railway and road bridge was originally built in the area of the harbour, but due to several urban planning decisions was put out of use. The original bridge, therefore, had to be reallocated and adapted to new functions. The design of the new bridge, completed in July 2007, makes use of the original bridge: 95% of the steel structure, and 50% of the operating machinery that enabled the movement of the bridge, as well as the span locks that blocked the bridge for its normal use. The new bridge spans 99,2 m and has an 18-m wide platform for road use: harbour traffic and the Formula 1 circuit.