Buro Happold provided the building services (M&E) on this award-winning footbridge which connects the Royal Ballet School with the Royal Opera House in Floral Street, Covent Garden. The Bridge of Aspiration is a dramatic twisting structure that changes level as it spans the street. An instant iconic landmark in this highly sensitive setting, it triumphantly evokes the grace, elegance and fluid movement of the dancers who use it.

The bridge is constructed of 23 aluminium frames which twist through 90 degrees from end to end to create a concertina effect, graphically enhanced by the careful detailing and heliotropic lighting design. Buro Happold’s bridges and building services specialists analysed the complex spatial layout and thermal performance of the glazed structure to deliver an M&E solution that was economical in terms of both equipment and running costs.

Date: 2002