Living Bridges: The Inhabited Bridge - Past, Present and Future

In 1831 Old London Bridge was demolished following the construction of Sir John Rennie's replacement structure. Begun in 1176, it was the first stone bridge to have been erected across the Thames and until 1763 it had boasted a famous parade of shops and houses on either side of a narrow thoroughfare. Throughout Europe whole communities were supported by such habitable bridges. The last bridge of this type to be built in Britain was Pulteney Bridge constructed in Bath in 1773. This work examines the contribution that habitable bridges have made to city life from the Middle Ages to the present day. The history and construction of major inhabited bridges in Europe, the Middle East and America are discussed in detail. In Europe these include Old London Bridge, the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Venice's Rialto Bridge and the Pont de Notre Dame in Paris. One section of the book is devoted to presenting the seven shortlisted entries in a competition to design a habitable bridge for London, spanning the Thames from Temple Gardens on the North Bank to the area in front of London Weekend Television building in the south. Among the entries is one by Daniel Libeakind, originator of the "boiler house" proposal for the extension to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Four pages are accorded to the winning entry in the competition.