Fish Beam Bridge near Plettenberg
title: fish beam bridge
purpose: platform and rest area on a bicycle path
location: near Plettenberg, Germany
client: municipality of Plettenberg
project: 2013
building time: 2015
structural engineer: Weimar Ingenieure, Berlin
A historic railway bridge dating back to 1914 had not been used for 50 years and was no longer accessible to anyone for safety reasons. although the listed engineering structure is a structural landmark in the Lenne valley, its strong visual presence was in stark contrast to its complete lack of function. the town of Plettenberg, the owner of the bridge, wanted to make the structure accessible to the public and create a special place on the supra-regional "Lenneroute" cycle route. On the one hand, a rest and relaxation area was to be created under the bridge for visitors and, on the other hand, access to the bridge was to be provided by means of a staircase and footbridge construction in order to make it possible to experience the imposing structure and its location in the landscape. All the new parts are clearly recognisable as such, but their materials and colours were chosen to create an interplay between the heavy, riveted cast iron profiles on the one hand and the filigree new construction on the other, rather than a stark contrast in design, and the suspended staircase and the superimposed footbridge were designed as lightweight steel structures and are reversible. No component of the historical substance was altered or even destroyed in such a way that it represents a massive intervention in the structure of the industrial monument.
