On July 5, the new signature 266-foot pedestrian bridge designed and built for Ralph Wilson Park will embark upon its 10-day journey across New York State. This will be its final leg of its journey to Buffalo, where it will arrive in four sections on two barges at Ralph Wilson Park (formerly LaSalle Park). The public is invited to track the journey* as it departs from its current location at Port of Coeymans, near Albany, New York, whether by social media, or as it arrives to Ralph Wilson Park, where it will be welded together and then installed.
*Community Watch Locations: The Ralph Wilson Park Conservancy and local partners will share information about the exact time and date of the arrival of the barges carrying the Ralph Wilson Park Bridge (anticipated 7/15 or 7/16) and suggested publicly-accessible viewing locations (on water and land) so that the community can watch the historic arrival of our bridge to the shore of Ralph Wilson Park.
Social Media:
www.facebook.com/RalphWilsonParkBuffalo
www.instagram.com/ralphwilsonparkbuffalo
www.instagram.com/ralphwilsonparkbridge
Following is additional information pertaining to the bridge design, and the timeline of the voyage – from Cimolai’s manufacturing plant in Italy to Buffalo.
Bridge Design
- A community driven visioning process for Ralph Wilson Park that started in 2018 called
Imagine LaSalle emphasized that the community’s #1 priority was safe access to the
park. The City of Buffalo and the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation added a major
infrastructure project to the original scope of the park design: the pedestrian bridge and
the redesign of the 4th street park. The cost of both is approximately $20M. - The bridge design was chosen through a community-based design competition led by
the University at Buffalo Regional Institute in early 2020. The community chose schlaich
bergmann partner (sbp), known for its creaMve, stylish, sustainable design of long-span
bridges and towers throughout the world. - The bridge was designed with an appreciation for Buffalo’s rich architectural and
industrial heritage, coupled with a desire to create an innovative and optimized
structure. The result is a Med-arch bridge structure with an enclosed steel arch that
protects pedestrians from the noise and traffic below, while also creating a safe and
welcoming crossing into the park. Groups of architectural cut-outs are patterned across
the vertical sides of the steel, allowing for the efficient flow of forces between the top
and bottom chords of the arch. The proposed pattern of openings was developed as an
interpretation of the craftsmanship and detailing associated with Buffalo’s historic
architecture. - This new 266-foot pedestrian bridge designed by schlaich bergermann partner (sbp) will
soon span across interstate I-190 and the CSX rail line to link the new park with the
Lower West Side neighborhood of Buffalo.
Bridge Construction
- Cimolai, the bridge manufacturer, is based in Italy and just established a manufacturing
site in Olean, NY. Cimolai was chosen to manufacture the bridge because of its extensive
bridge manufacturing experience, high standard of quality, ability to successfully manage
the complexity of the design, and a competitive bid. - The signature pedestrian bridge was shipped from Cimolai’s manufacturing plant in Italy
and arrived in the New York City Harbor on June 22, and will make its way to Buffalo by
way of the Erie Canal in early July 2024. - The bridge will be transported via barge along the Erie Canal on two boats and in four
pieces, lifted to the shore of Ralph Wilson Park, assembled and moved across the park
and lifted into its final location via a self-propelled modular transporter (SPMT) and a
gantry system in October 2024. - The bridge is supported by embankment walls on either side of the I-190 roadway. By
adding berms at either end of the bridge, sbp was able to shorten the overall length of
the bridge and thereby reduce the structural impact, weight, and amount of material
required. The structure allows for a usable deck width of 16 feet and the steel plate that
covers the bridge reaches a height of 20 feet above the deck at the midspan. - Once placed over the I-190, there will still be significant construction work done on it
before it will be open to the public in 2026.
Learn more at www.rwparkbuffalo.org.