This scheme involved the design and construction of a five-metre-wide pedestrian and cycle bridge across the Grand Union Canal in Leicester. The bridge leads from outside of the Leicester Riders Morningside Arena on Charter Street to the city's flagship open

space Abbey Park.

The bridge's design allows for the transit of large numbers of people, whilst providing adequate span and freeboard to clear the waterway and towpath. With an impressive 50m span, the bridge is an elegant structure, which seamlessly blends into its surrounding environment.

The bridge's proportions created a number of technical challenges during design and construction. The main superstructure was delivered to site via Abbey Park in six sections before on-site fabrication took place. It was then lifted into place in a precision operation with little margin for error.

The design and build contract was undertaken by Leicestershire-based Danaher & Walsh Civil Engineering, a term contract partner with Leicester City Council's Bridges Team.

The bridge was designed to have visual appeal of its own, with its steel Pratt truss design producing an aesthetically pleasing shape. The paint colour was chosen as a balance between celebrating the boldness of the structure's design, whilst blending sympathetically into the environments over which the bridge traverses.

Additionally, it was important that the bridge was designed to ensure it is unobtrusive on the Grade II* Registered park and garden, which opened to the public in 1882. The new pathways from the bridge into Abbey Park are designed so that they link into the existing axial arrangement designed by the celebrated landscape architect William Barron in 1879.

The approaches to the bridge from both sides of the canal are designed to organically blend into their respective environments. Furthermore, the Charter Street end of the structure becomes an informal gateway to the grandeur and tranquility of Abbey Park from an urbanised area of Leicester; the impressive width of the bridge hints at the extent of the park to which it leads.

Lighting concealed within the handrail is not only practical, but creates a stunning feature of the bridge in the hours of darkness.

Truss type was important to limit the weight and allow the longer main span. Both Vierendeel and Pratt arrangements were investigated, the latter having a beneficial effect on both member size and pier reactions. For simplicity of surfacing, and to minimise pile numbers and number of movement joints, both spans were designed to have a common fixed bearing, meaning each end abutment required only a single row of piles.

Access constraints and the required size of the bridge meant that detailed forward planning of the construction phase was crucial.

The bridge's main superstructure was delivered in four quadrants and assembled on site. Delivery of the four 17 tonne pieces was a true feat of transport planning. The huge trombone trailers were reversed slowly along the footpaths of Abbey Park. The design of the works area was heavily influenced by the crane that was required to lift the superstructure into place.

The 1,000 tonne mobile crane required piled pads to be constructed to provide steady platforms for the crane's outriggers and prevent any movement during lifting operations. The proximity of the adjacent sports arena and a high pressure gas main made lifting precision imperative.

Future maintenance was an important consideration for Leicester City Council. The design and construction considered the desire for minimal intervention over the design life in order to minimise maintenance budget requirements. Member thicknesses were designed with an element of structural redundancy to allow longer periods between major maintenance.

The feature lighting installed within the handrail is LED type, which features both low power consumption and absolutely minimal maintenance. The high-grip surfacing to the bridge deck is both safe and durable - again leading to longer maintenance periods.

The carbon footprint of the project was mitigated by using low-emission plant and vehicles and by using a very high proportion of local labour.

Construction materials used were from certified sustainable sources where possible. Recycled 6F2 aggregate was used for the capping layer and crane platforms.

For every tree that was felled in the construction of the scheme, two more were planted elsewhere within Abbey Park.

The scheme also involved the planting of an area of wildflower meadow, helping to enhance the blue / green corridors and aiding bee pollination.