Frankham was commissioned to prepare and present options to redesign an existing footbridge which crosses a rail line.
- Local Authority
The bridge, which also crosses a river and is adjacent to ancient barrows, is part of the Borough’s strategic plans to improve mobility and boost travel to and from the university, by pedestrians and cyclists.
Objectives:
- Improve the user’s experience for pedestrian, restricted mobility users and cyclists
- Improve the security on the bridge and in the immediate vicinity
- Comply with current guidance and legislation including Equality Act 2010
- Ensure the proposals are acceptable to the stakeholders, comprising Network Rail, Environment Agency and University of Essex
The physical constraints of the site added to the complexity of developing solutions, having to consider a heritage site, railway infrastructure, the Salary Brook river and the position of the existing student accommodation.
We were able to present 3 main options; repair, refurbish/remodel and replacement, with each option broken down into sub-options. Additional replacement options were also reviewed.
We used a mixture of traditional plan drawing and 3D visualisations to bring specific detail, along with visual interpretation, to the client and stakeholder workshops. All parties were able to see exactly what was being proposed regardless of the level of knowledge in understanding plans.
We delivered a professional and bespoke response to the client’s original brief with great success, with the client delighted with the initial stage outcome.
