Irwell bridge designer selected

London-based architecture practice Tonkin Liu has won a RIBA competition to design a new foot bridge across the River Irwell.

Tonkin Liu with partner engineer Arup beat 170 other entrants for the right to design the bridge for Salford City Council.

Runners up included Moxon Architects with Mott MacDonald, Wolfgang Buttress Studio with Toby Savage Design and LDA Design, and Atelier Zündel Cristea, Paris.

The bridge is part of the ongoing Irwell River Park programme designed to link waterfront areas from Media City UK to Manchester city centre.

The bridge will be sited at the Meadows, a 17 acre green space within the northern section of the Irwell River Park area linking to the English Cities Fund development Salford Central around Chapel Street.

Renato Benedetti, partner at specialist bridge designer McDowell + Benedetti and RIBA advisor, said: "Tonkin Liu with Arup are worthy winners, their unique bridge is poetic, innovative and elegantly engineered with sinuous curves seamlessly linking the Meadows with the new public space to be created. Its sculptural qualities ensure it will be a joy to look at and to use, becoming an inspirational new urban marker for Salford."

Mike Tonkin of Tonkin Liu said: "Our biomimetic design has grown out of many years of research with Ed Clark's engineering team at Arup and will bring together many facets of our fascination with nature."