West End Pedestrian Bridge
The West End Bridge, considered an engineering masterpiece since it opened in 1932, crosses the Ohio River about a mile from Point State Park and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. However, it features no meaningful pedestrian connection to the two neighborhoods on its northern and southern banks.
In 2006, with the support of the Alcoa Foundation, Riverlife held a design competition for a pedestrian bridge to be incorporated into the bridge’s grand structure. The competition received international accolades and submissions from top design teams around the world.
The winning solution, from California-based firm Endres Ware, links the north and south banks of the Ohio River with a combined pedestrian-bicycle bridge that runs as a gently sloping curve along the east side of the existing bridge, with three connections at the shoreline at either end of the span.
Riverlife continues to work with transportation officials to determine the next steps of implementing this innovative design.
