Transformation is the Answer!

connecting people

The integration of the new bridge into the Port of Hamburg and its surroundings is predetermined, but the engagement with the overall design will determine its future role as a landmark for the city of Hamburg. With its new location and size, the future bridge moves closer to the city and its people. The new Köhlbrand Bridge rises once again above the horizon, becoming more visible. It is the restoration of the condition shortly after the completion of the current bridge, when it towered over its surroundings.

paving the way

The Köhlbrand bridge system consists of the current bridge and the ramps — three structures that share the same function but differ greatly in their design requirements. While the current solution breaks down into these three separate parts, the new approach will create continuity, forming the bridge system as a unified whole. Beyond the urban planning and design aspects described, the reimagined Köhlbrand Bridge also represents a technical advancement and the result of an intensive review of all structural components with regard to their static and constructive roles and their materiality.

creating construction culture

The harmonious proportions of the existing Köhlbrand Bridge are taken up and further developed in the new design, which undergoes a ‘scaling’: greater height, longer main and side spans, and proportionally enlarged spans in the foreland. Slender structural elements — especially the foreland piers — reduce the perceived mass of the increased size. With scaling comes greater transparency. From a distance, the delicate foreland piers appear like a fine hatching on the horizon. The superstructure hovers above the playful silhouette of the harbor cranes — a true skyline.