• Located in Sofia’s South Park, the bridge provides a pedestrian and cyclist link connecting the two halves of this major urban green space.
• The bridge follows an elevated course through the park, offering vistas of the surrounding forests and mountains and creating generous viewing decks.
• The bridge will be built with a modular timber system, minimising the project’s carbon footprint and impact on the local environment.
The Prague- and London-based firm Boele architects, working in collaboration with Buro Happold’s Berlin office, have been selected as the winners of an international competition to design a new pedestrian bridge in Sofia’s South Park, with construction scheduled to begin at the end of 2023.
The competition was organised by the City of Sofia’s Department of Architecture and Urban Planning to find the most suitable way to internally connect Sofia’s South Park, currently split by the busy Byala Cherkva road. The park is a centrepiece of the urban landscape of the Bulgarian capital, as public leisure space as well as an element with a strong positive effect on the city’s microclimate. It also acts as a corridor for connecting flora and fauna from Vitosha Mountain to the centre of Sofia. Once completed, the bridge will provide a continuous pedestrian promenade and cycling path through the entire length of the park, from the National Palace of Culture to the South Park III section – the largest, most biodiverse and most popular part of the park.
PROJECT INFORMATION:
Location: Sofia, Bulgaria
Client: City of Sofia
Architect: Boele architects
Structural engineer: Buro Happold
The curvilinear bridge slopes gently upward, satisfying clearance requirements over Byala Cherkva and winding through the park’s dense greenery as it crosses the Perlovska River. The design allows for an uninterrupted connection while minimising disruption during the construction process. The width of the bridge varies throughout its course, creating spaces where people can pause and enjoy the surroundings. At its highest points, above the treetops, the bridge offers striking views of Vitosha Mountain
The competition submissions were evaluated by an international jury consisting of Jesper Dahl (Head of Planning in Frederiksberg, Copenhagen), Milutin Folić (former Chief City Architect and a Chief Urban Planner of the City of Belgrade) and Resul Emra Shaha (Chairman of the Istanbul Planning Agency).
Milotin Folić, member of the jury: ‘The design is very simple and effective. It does not interrupt the surroundings and is very well integrated around the river, allowing for the crossing and also creating a new experience in the city. With this design, Sofia is at the same level of public space design as Copenhagen, Zurich and other cities.’
Petr Suma, founder of Boele architects: ‘South Park is a key recreational area for Sofia, and we knew that our design needed to be humble and reinforce the beautiful context we were stepping into. We wanted to introduce a structure that is not only simple and functional, but also in full harmony with its surroundings.’
The bridge’s design and structural engineering sensitively reflect its natural setting. The bridge will be constructed with a timber module system, a method that will limit the project’s carbon footprint and reduce the impact of construction on the natural surroundings. In total, the bridge measures approximately 325 metres long. Its structural system consists of a continuous beam with spans ranging from 13 to 15 metres in length. The 450-millimetre-deep deck varies in width between 4.5 and 6.5 metres and is divided into sections, each between 20 and 24 metres long, that are joined with steel connectors. The timber deck is supported by steel columns that are set at an incline to minimise the bridge’s footprint and maintain a maximum 15-metre span for each section.
