The Green Bridge

The Eleanor Schonell Bridge is located in Queensland Australia and spans the Brisbane River and is a 390m long cable-stayed bridge with semi fan system that connects Dutton Park to the University of Queensland’s St Lucia Campus and was the first bridge in Australia to accommodate, pedestrians, buses and cyclists.



The bridge is named after Florence Eleanor Schonell who, while was South African born, had a major impact in Brisbane for her work with children affected by cerebral palsy and dyslexia. She was also an educational scientist, she died at the age of 59 and this bridge is a testament to her wonderful work with children.



There are a number of bridges along this section of the Brisbane river that can be viewed by land and water and while travelling down the Brisbane river on a city cat, this bridge stood out to me amongst the others, what caught my eye was the symmetry between each concert pillar and the industrial look of the bridge itself.



The bridge was constructed by the balanced cantilever method, with progressive erection and stressing of stay cables to support the structural steel and precast concrete deck as it extended across the river. Interesting facts about this bridge is that it contains solar panels to power the lighting for the bridge and also a water treatment system.



I took the photo in black and white to make the industrial and symmetrical looks stand out. It is such a beautiful piece of architecture!