There's a new bridge in town. Dianne says it's called the Ponte della Musica (music bridge), and I have no reason to doubt her, or hardly any. The name makes sense because it was installed to link the new left-bank museum and music area of Flaminio-- consisting primarily of Zaha Hadid's monumental MAXXI (museum) and Renzo Piano's Parco della Musica (music park), which looks downright humble next to Hadid's enormous concrete construction--with the right bank of the Tevere.
 |
| Ponte della Musica, from the right bank. |
We had never seen the bridge, but knew it to be controversial. Some--not just "experts" but residents of the area--wonder why it was built at all, since it doesn't seem to connect to much of a neighborhood across the Tevere.
 |
Looking toward Monte Mario. The center
surface is asphalt, the sides wooden planks. |
Yes, the northern portion of Prati is at the left when one crosses, but straight ahead is the uninhabited rise of Monte Mario, and to the right (north) Olympic Stadium (where the soccer teams play) and an enormous fascist sports complex, built in the 1930s. On our visit, the bridge appeared to be populated mostly by joggers--who also use the right bank of the Tevere here--whose running range has no doubt been greatly expanded by the structure. Although the bridge is capable of accepting automobile traffic--not clear how much--at the moment it is open only to pedestrians.
 |
A private athletic club on the Flaminio side.
Looks like it lost a tennis court or two. |
Others have criticized the bridge for having wooden walkways (sure to weather poorly, and difficult if not impossible to clean when the graffiti writers land). It's likely, too, that the private atheletic clubs that populate the banks of the Tevere on this part of the river lost some land in the process or had their luxurious--and, until one could walk out on this bridge, hidden--lairs revealed for the ordinary public to see and envy.
 |
Ship ahoy! Note the handrails, inspired by the
Queen Mary. |
Still, we like this bridge, with its sleek, rolling, boat-like, naval look. It may be Italy's bridge to nowhere, but it's elegant and sea-worthy, and it's about time something was done for runners. Perhaps they should call it Ponte delle Joggers.
Bill
p.s. One of our readers was disappointed that we hadn't included information on the bridge's architect/designer. So...the bridge had its origins in a partnership between Davood Liaghat, who was chief bridge engineer
at the Buro Happold firm, and London architect
Kit Powell-Williams, who was working in Rome with
the engineering firm C. Lottie e Associati. Buro
Happold won a design competition for the structure in 2000.
Title:
Ponte della Musica: Rome's new Bridge to Nowhere
Rating:
100%
based on
99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author
Unknown
1:11 AM
Related Articles Flaminio, Foro Italico, Maxxi, Parco della Musica, Ponte della Musica, Prati, Renzo Piano, Stadio Olimpico, Zaha Hadid :
