Gateshead Millennium Bridge

This world's first tilting bridge takes its place at the end of a line of distinguished bridges across the River Tyne, linking Gateshead Quays accessibly to the center of Newcastle. The bridge is made up of a pair of steel arches: the deck that comprises the pedestrian and cycle path and the supporting deck that forms an arc over the river. The pedestrian and cycle deck is an almost-horizontal curve, suspended above the river from a series of suspension cables. The bridge tilts as a single, rigid structure. As the arch tilts lower, the pathway rises, each counterbalancing the other so that a minimum of energy is needed. The simplicity of the idea and the geometry of the curves (while moving and in its rest state) are superbly elegant. Jonathan Speirs and Associates was commisioned to design the lighting. They created a complex design to fully illuminate the bridge without causing light pollution.