Millenium Bridge Opens
On June 10, 2000, the Millenium Bridge - a footbridge across the River Thames - was opened by Queen Elizabeth. The radical new design was the work of architect Sir Norman Foster with sculptor Sir Anthony Caro and engineering support from Arup. It was the first new crossing of the River Thames in over 100 years. As the first few thousand people crossed the bridge, it developed an unexpected and potentially dangerous lateral "wobble". This caused people to unwittingly walk "in step", which increased the oscillation. The design had been adapted from a computer model typical for a car bridge, but which did not take into account the lateral forces associated with human walking. After structural damping was added to stop the oscillation, the bridge re-opened in 2002.
Books in our collection
Footbridge vibration design by Elsa de Sa Caetano
The world of footbridges: from the utilitarian to the spectacular by Klaus Idelberger
Millau Viaduct: Foster + Partners by Norman Foster, Thomas Leslie