Tanjong Rhu Bridge

The Tanjong Rhu Bridge is a pedestrian-only footbridge spanning over the Geylang River in Tanjong Rhu, Singapore. Opened in July 1998, it connects residents of various condominiums near the Tanjong Rhu Promenade to facilities in the Singapore Sports Hub, such as the National Stadium, the Singapore Indoor Stadium, the Water Sports Centre near the Kallang Basin, and other facilities.

Tanjong Rhu Bridge
Tanjong Rhu Bridge at night
Coordinates	1°17′57″N 103°52′26″E / 1.299125°N 103.873756°E / 1.299125; 103.873756
Carries	Pedestrians
Crosses	Geylang River
Locale	Tanjong Rhu
Begins	Tanjong Rhu Promenade
Ends	Singapore Sports Hub
Owner	Land Transport Authority
Maintained by	Land Transport Authority
Characteristics
Material	Steel and concrete
Total length	180m
Width	4m
Height	19m
Longest span	2
No. of spans	102
No. of lanes	1
History
Designer	Public Works Department
Engineering design by	Murray North (SEA) Ltd.
Construction start	1996 (expected)
Construction end	July 1998
Construction cost	$5.1-million SDG
Opening	4 August 1998
Location

Tanjong Rhu was a shipyard hub until 1985 when the Singapore government forced the shipyards to either move to Jurong, close down, or comply with strict pollution regulations due to the waterfront being polluted, which interfered with the government's plans of building luxurious condominiums in the area.^[1] As a part of the rebranding of Tanjong Rhu, the S$5.1 million (1998) (US$3.05 million) Tanjong Rhu Bridge was designed by the Public Works Department (later privatised as the CPG Corporation) with assistance from engineering firm Murray North (SEA) Ltd^[2] and restressing works by OVM Prestress (an associate company of Wee Poh Holdings who was awarded the S$460,000 (1997) (US$309,804.82) contract for the prestress of the bridge in 1997).^[3] Construction was expected to start in 1996^[4] and was completed in July 1998. The bridge was officially opened on August 4, 1998, by Koo Tsai Kee, then parliamentary secretary for the Ministry of National Development.^[5]

The idea of a 'commercial village' in the Singapore Sports Hub near the bridge and the Kallang River was first announced in 1994, with tendering expected by 1996. The plan was that restaurants and water sport shops would be established to provide a "Boat Quay type-atmosphere"^[4] so "[people] can enjoy the waterfront".^[2] In December 1997, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) announced that the commercial sites in the village were to be on sale within the next few years when there are residents.^[2] It was speculated to commence operations once the bridge was opened.^[6] Additionally, the URA explored the possibilities of introducing family activities such as canoeing and boating in December 1997.^[2]

The Tanjong Rhu Bridge is a pedestrian-only steel suspension footbridge that is 180 metres (590 ft) long, with its deck being 130 metres (430 ft) long and 4 metres (13 ft) wide. It has a 19 metres (62 ft) tall A-frame tower located on both ends of the bridge that connects the two 4.5 inches (11 cm) thick main suspension cables to each side. Connected to the suspension cables are a hundred 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick hangar cables which also connects to the bridge's deck. It was designed to be a suspension bridge for aesthetics rather than functionality. Normally, suspension bridges are used for wide rivers as they utilised deflection theory.^[7] However, the Public Works Department chose a suspension bridge design as they planned for it to be a point of interest in Tanjong Rhu, essentially "a mini-version of other famous suspension bridges in San Francisco and New York", such as the Golden Gate Bridge.^[2]

It connects the Tanjong Rhu Promenade with the nearby 'commerical village' of the Singapore Sports Hub.^[5]

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