StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

London Millennium Bridge - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The paper "London Millennium Bridge" discusses that the second phase is definitely as successful as the bridge today is an asset to London. Hence the earlier review is appropriate and is based on strong secondary research but does not take into consideration the various factors…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER94.6% of users find it useful
London Millennium Bridge
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "London Millennium Bridge"

London Millennium Bridge links the city of London with the Bankside. It’s a 330m steel bridge over the River Thames and is 330m long. It’s the first bridge that was built across the Thames River in London since the opening of the Tower Bridge (1894). Another special feature about the bridge is that is the first pedestrian-only bridge. The city is linked near St Paul's Cathedral with the Tate Modern art gallery on the Bankside. The bridge officially opened on 10th June 2000 and was immediately closed after being open for 2 days as it swayed alarmingly. The movement was not expected to be so great and this led to a lot of criticism of the project. Extensive research took place on the design and the bridge was reopened again after modifications to the original design on 22 February 2002. Since then it has not had any troubles and today is one of the major attractions of London attracting thousands of pedestrians and tourists every day. The Millennium Bridge is a simple concept that has been given shape via an extensive and complex design.
Findings of the Review
The review views the Bridge in 2 phases. The first phase is before the reopening of the bridge in 2002 (after numerous modifications were made) and the second is after the reopening immediately after the opening and the 2 years that it was closed. The review terms the first phase as a complete failure due to the following reasons:
• It did not meet the criteria of a successful project
• It was not completed on time
• It overshot the initial budget
• The final product was not of the best quality and had to be redesigned
• Extra funds had to be raised in order to do the modifications
The review terms the second phase as a success due to the following reasons:
• There is no wobbling and meets all the technical requirements
• It left up to the expectations
• It has contributed and generated revenue through tourism
• It has created jobs as it has opened up new business opportunities in the surrounding area
Even though the findings of the review are accurate and based on quality research, it does not take into consideration all the factors into consideration before terming it as an initial failure.
Yes, the fact that the engineers failed to come up with a design that could have predicted the wobbling and make necessary modifications cannot be ignored. But this kind of pedestrian effect on the bridge was unpredictable. As there hadn’t been any previous recordings that had caused such major effects (Zasky, 2011).
Also, there are numerous other factors that need to be considered. Prior to this, there hadn’t been much literature on the lateral vibration of a bridge. Even though there were numerous instances where lateral vibration was observed, it was not given much attention and hence was not incorporated into bridge-building codes (Newland, n.d.). Examples of other bridges that have registered lateral vibration are Auckland Harbour Road Bridge, Groves Suspension Bridge and Birmingham NEC Link Bridge.
The research that has gone into finding a solution for the problem has lead to the new literature on the topic and this will be used as a benchmark for all future projects. As mentioned above numerous other bridges, which are different in design and technology to that of London Millennium Bridge, that have vibrated due to the load of the crowd have come to light (Newland, 2003).
The project manager of the Bridge said, “As a result of what we have done here footbridges all over the world will be designed in a different way”. According to David Bell of Millennium Bridge Trust “The structure is probably the best known modern bridge in the world” (BBC, 2002).
The above statements make it clear that London Millennium Bridge is one of the best in the world. This has been possible only because of the initial defects in the design that lead to the wobbling. The solutions designed to overcome the wobbling has now made the bridge the best in the world and future bridges will use the findings of the research to build better bridges.
Hence, the initial defects cannot make the project a failure as in a long run it has contributed to developing the technology and design.

Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“London millennium bridge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/management/1429795-project-management
(London Millennium Bridge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words)
https://studentshare.org/management/1429795-project-management.
“London Millennium Bridge Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/management/1429795-project-management.
  • Cited: 2 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF London Millennium Bridge

The London Millennium Footbridge Description

This paper ''millennium bridge'' tells us that the London Millennium Footbridge is a steel suspension bridge that has been constructed to be used by pedestrians for crossing the River Thames in London.... he structure of the millennium bridge is innovative and complex but it has been designed to achieve a simple form.... he design of the millennium bridge is based on the following considerations: ... Owned and maintained by the bridge House Estates, this bridge is located between Blackfriars and Southwark bridge....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

Londons Millennium Bridge

Seeking to understand the development of London's millennium bridge, this research paper will provide a brief description of the history and development of London's millennium bridge.... A short analysis of the costs, benefits and risks associated with the project will follow and we will conclude with a broad overview of the issues studied with respect to one of the most controversial construction projects in London in recent memory, the building of the millennium bridge (Architects, 2000; Steves, 2006)....
10 Pages (2500 words) Case Study

Londons Millennium Bridge

This paper ''London's millennium bridge'' tells that The dawn of the new millennium ushered in a mixture of excitement, trepidation, and relief when January 1st, 2000 appeared, and the world remained the same.... nbsp; Seeking to understand the development of London's millennium bridge, this research paper will provide a brief description of the history and development of London's millennium bridge....   A short analysis of the costs, benefits and risks associated with the project will follow and we will conclude with a broad overview of the issues studied concerning one of the most controversial construction projects in London in recent memory, the building of the millennium bridge (Architects, 2000; Steves, 2006)....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

Life, work and influence of Lord Norman Forster

He constructed Duxford Museum, Willis Faber, Palace of Hope and Reconciliation in azakhstan, Hearst Tower in New York, National Police Memorial in london, Tanaka Business School in london, london City Hall, Dumas Headquarters, Swiss Re london, and won Sterling Prize twice....
12 Pages (3000 words) Essay

London Millennium Footbridge

The author of this essay "london millennium Footbridge" touches upon the construction of a bridge in London.... It is stated that the london millennium Footbridge is a steel suspension bridge which has been constructed to be used by pedestrians for crossing the River Thames in London.... hellip; The initial design of the bridge was flawed and the pedestrians experienced swaying motion while crossing the river through the bridge, consequently, the bridge was closed just two days after its first opening and was reopened in 2, 02 with some design modifications which eliminated the vibrations....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

Foundation Engineering of Millennium Bridge in London

The day when millennium bridge was inaugurated it was noticed that the bridge was moving sideways when people were walking on it causing a sudden fear amongst the people.... nbsp; Foundation Engineering The structure in question is the millennium bridge in London, UK, connecting St Paul's Cathedral to the Tate Modern Gallery.... (The millennium bridge, 2011) After investigation it was discovered that the major reason behind the swinging was not the frailty of the bridge but the walking style of people....
1 Pages (250 words) Essay

The Negative Reputation of the Constructors of the London Millennium Bridge

The millennium bridge, a steel suspension bridge for pedestrian use, stretches across the Thames, linking the City of London, near St.... This history of the millennium bridge dates to 1996, when the Financial Times, together with the London Borough of Southwark and the Royal Institute of British Architects, held a competition (ARUP, Vision).... Over two hundred people were involved in the background research, testing, and construction of the millennium bridge....
14 Pages (3500 words) Research Paper

The Millennium Bridge Projects

hellip; It is really quite significant to state that today, the London Millennium Bridge is accepted as a permanent feature and as a necessity and a convenience and even loved, except perhaps in the depths of a British winter.... From the paper "The millennium bridge Projects" it is clear that Millennium projects have varied in their success and their acceptability by the public.... The london millennium footbridge was an idea waiting to happen....
10 Pages (2500 words) Case Study
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us