Best Transportation Project

Photo courtesy of T.Y. Lin

T.Y. Lin was the lead engineer on the project.

With the construction of Petco Park, the San Diego Padres' downtown home, the need arose for a grade-separated pedestrian crossing of six railroad tracks and Harbor Drive, a four-lane major arterial.

Construction manager/lead engineer T.Y. Lin International says the $27-million, 354-ft-long Harbor Drive Pedestrian Bridge is a graceful, single-cable self-anchored suspension bridge with a single inclined pylon and a curved deck suspended only along the inside edge.

The bridge's main span is 354 ft long. The 131-ft tall pylon is inclined at a 60-degree angle from the horizontal and leans over the deck to support the single pair of suspension cables. Thirty-four individual suspenders attached to the main cable support the 20-ft-wide deck from the top of the railing at one edge of the deck only.

Innovative material selection, such as the use of structural duplex stainless steel, was allowed, with the requirement that it be part of an ongoing monitoring program to provide information for future projects on how to take advantage of its strength and corrosion-resistant properties.

The bridge alignment is designed to connect the public right-of-way at each landing, providing a key segment of a continuous promenade from Balboa Park to San Diego Bay (the Park-to-Bay Link).

Key Players

Owner: Centre City Development Corp., San Diego

General Contractor: Reyes Construction, National City

Construction Management/Lead Engineer: T.Y. Lin International, National City

Architect: Safdie Rabines Architects, San Diego

Civil Engineer: David Evans and Associates, San Diego

Submitted by:

T.Y. Lin International