The Design of Derby Cathedral Bridge, a Unique Cable-Stayed Swing Bridge

Derby Cathedral Bridge opened to the public in April 2009. The bridge is part of a wider masterplan regeneration providing access between a new residential development to the east of the city and the historic Cathedral Quarter in the City Centre. The bridge also forms a focal point in the re-landscaped Cathedral Green, and is sympathetic to the adjacent historic architecture of the Cathedral and the Silk Mill.

This paper discusses how architectural ambition was balanced with structural efficiency and buildability constraints. The paper focuses on how the unique structural form was analysed using a staged-constructed Finite Element analysis model. This allowed a slender mast and deck profile to be developed, unusual thermal effects to be quantified and a large 1.2m deck precamber to be accurately assessed and successfully implemented.