The Tshelimnyama Pedestrian Bridge near the Mariannhill Toll Plaza on the N3 outside Durban has won the South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE) Award for Technical Excellence at the recent annual branch awards function.The Tshelimnyama Township, located on the southern side of the N3 is home to many low-income families. The majority of residents have found work in the nearby industrial areas of Mahogany Ridge and Westmead on the northern side of the N3. Lacking shorter, more direct and safe routes from their homes to their workplaces, many of the residents directly crossed the N3 freeway in this vicinity. This was highly dangerous for those crossing the freeway, as well as for the motorists. Consequently, several pedestrian lost their lives.LogashriSewnarain, Regional Manager for South African National Roads Agency SOC Ltd (SANRAL) Eastern Region Office, said in order to address this issue and to assist with determining a suitable solution, a pedestrian audit was conducted which confirmed that a pedestrian bridge was warranted.

“To assist the residents to cross the N3 while simultaneously allowing for future route upgrades, the SANRAL invited tenders for a bridge design that could freely span the N3 without impacting current and future traffic requirements.

“The challenge of the site was to attract pedestrians onto the bridge and to design a structure which integrated itself into the surrounding landscape.”

SMEC South Africa (formerly known as Vela VKE Consulting Engineers) was appointed as the consulting engineers for the project and produced a design that was functional as well as aesthetically pleasing.

The slender deck floats effortlessly over the N3, supported by thin cables and anchored to the central tower and the rock cutting on the adjacent slopes. The bridge was constructed by JT Ross (Pty) Ltd without cost overruns or variations.

“The success of this highly complex design has allowed the people of the Tshelimnyama Township to access their places of work as well as recreational areas in a well-lit, convenient and safe manner as evidenced by the high number of pedestrians who use the bridge on a daily basis.