Sheffield Parkway Bridge Competition

The proposed Sheffield Parkway Plate Bridge serves as an iconic gateway to the nearby cities of Sheffield and Rotherham. Constructed from steel plate, the structure pays homage to the area’s steel industry. The bridge is essentially a massive plate girder spanning across the parkway and fixed to steel plate “abutments” on each side. Its curved main span and large rectangular abutments recall the traditional cast iron bridges common to the region. Two narrow steel boxes, one running along the top edge of the plate and a second located between the walkways and following their vertical curve, are respectively the top and bottom flanges of the plate girder. The flanges experience tension and compression force due to bending moments in the bridge. Between these flanges is the steel plate web of the girder which carries shear force between the abutments. The rectangular cut-outs in this web redirect the normal path of the shear transfer, causing the web to function like a Vierendeel truss.