DESIGN COMPETITION

2021 – Ongoing

Design 5 – Architects, together with a team lead by ASPECT Studios including Collins and Turner, Yerrabingin, Eckersley O’Callaghan, JMT Consulting and Electrolight, have been providing heritage and architectural services for the Sydney Harbour Bridge Cycleway Northern Access project.

The SHBC northern access ramp is a much needed piece of civic infrastructure – a ‘missing link’ – to solve long-standing accessibility issues, enhance connections to the wider bike network and make cycling safe, convenient and attractive for more people.

The SHBC is also a missing link in the story of our national icon. It unveils an unrecognised history that has shadowed the SHB since its inception: The Bridge is bolted onto an ancient path of confluence and connection between Gadigal and Cammeraygal Aboriginal lands, a route underpinning a rich saltwater economy and culture that has been used for thousands of years.

An integral part of Design 5 – Architects’ role in the design team has been to draw out aesthetic, historic, social and spiritual values embedded within the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the surrounding cultural landscape, of both the modern and pre-colonial world, to present an outcome that is holistically tied to its place.

The 21st Century layer to the Sydney Harbour Bridge is an elegant piece of engineering that clearly identifies with the dramatic prowess of 20th Century transport infrastructure. Yet it remains a distinctly new but complimentary addendum, augmenting the story of the national icon with ancient yet evolving narratives intrinsic to the place. The new cycleway ramp recasts the Sydney Harbour Bridge as a national symbol of reconciliation and identity for Sydney and Australia.