IN SHORT
Commissioned by the Government of Valencia in 1986 and built between May 1987 and May 1989, the 9 de Octubre Bridge provides a major vehicular link to the main Madrid road, relieving the areas of la Caldera and Olivereta from traffic. The bridge is conceived as a double, mirror-image viaduct, with the space between the two opposing viaduct structures being determined by the layout of Avenida 9 d'Octubre. The mainly concrete superstructures are supported along the length of their inner sides by concrete columns set 7.2 meters apart (23.6 feet), and along the length of their outer sides by interspaced steel spindles.
The concrete sub-structures, including their diagonal rib bracings, were executed using rough-wood shuttering, so that the resulting untreated surface contrasts sharply with the smooth, black, machined-steel columns. Smooth, pre-cast concrete fascia-plates form the transition up to the roadways. The pedestrian decks, also pre-cast, are cantilevered out from the main road decks by a series of discrete trusses, which are scaled-down versions of the steel spindles supporting the road decks.
When seen from a distance, as it crosses the former bed of the now-diverted Turia, the double bridge appears less massive than the alternative of a single wide structure. Optically, the bridge's weight appears to shift toward the more massive part of the structure, with the spindles appearing to be almost too slender. The narrow, rhythmic spans of the 9 d'Octubre Bridge define the space both below and between the two viaducts, where a park and lake are planned. Illumination of the soffit anticipates the rippled surface of the water.
YEAR
1986 - 1988
ADDRESS
Pont del Nou d'Octubre
46035 València
Spain