LOCATION
Charlottesville, VA
STATUS
Construction in-process
CLIENT
City of Charlottesville
TYPOLOGY
BRIDGES
ROLE
Bridge Architect – Architect of Record
Belmont Bridge has historically been a vital pedestrian and vehicular link over the CSX Rail right of way between downtown Charlottesville and Belmont, its industrial-residential neighborhood to the south. In response to the current 1960 bridge's deteriorating condition and reinvigorated urban growth, the city commissioned the engineers Kimley Horn Associates with KGP as Bridge Architect to restore a decade-long pursuit to provide a design that matched the community's goals and vision.
The team worked with the community and multiple city agencies through extensive public outreach to create less of a landmark than an urban corridor that would ultimately merge the neighborhoods and districts on each side of the tracks.
After conducting extensive workshops, the team developed a design responsive to various users, devoting 60% of the bridge to bike and pedestrian use. Computer modeling showed that vehicular capacity was governed alone by the intersection conditions, allowing the bridge to optimize all modes of travel. The result of the design is strong pedestrian and bike connections integrating the surrounding urban fabric.
