210 bpm, Hranolky, Kokrháč, Nelávka, Klínovvka. Studios of FA CTU are working on footbridges to the Giant Mountains

The student footbridges first appeared in the highest Czech mountains in 2019. At that time, the Giant Mountains administrators selected locations where the wooden structures of the old footbridges were outdated. Thanks to the inventiveness of the students, the installation of five unconventional constructions finally stood out from the usual replacement of outdated wooden elements. The set of footbridges and shelters, which were implemented a year later, won the 2022 Achievement of a Public Investor award at the Giant Mountains Architecture Prize.

A total of 47 students from the Department of Architectural Design II are taking part in the design-build project, in which ideas are brought to life with their own hands. The footbridges must be designed for safe operation and their material solutions must meet the demanding climatic conditions. Most of the footbridges must be transported to the site without the use of conventional heavy equipment. The teams will now develop the concepts to the stage of implementation and production documentation, while the physical implementation will take place in the second half of May on the piazzetta in front of the faculty, from where the footbridges will be transported to their destinations in the Giant Mountains.

The inventiveness of the final solutions is suggested by the names the students have given to their footbridges: 210 bpm as a memory of the high heart rate experienced by the Seho–Poláček studio team on the avalanche-covered slope on the way from the Giant's Mine to Sněžka. Hranolky, that's the name of their footbridge over the Pudlava river, given by the students of the Hlaváček–Čeněk–Minarovič studio. It will be located on the blue hiking trail leading from Špindlerův Mlýn to Labská bouda.

Kokrháč, after the historical name of the nearby mountain Kotel. A team from the Kordovský–Vrbata studio is working on the footbridge over the Boudecký brook on the Krakonoš Trail connecting Horní Mísečky and Dvoračky. The Klínovvka footbridge over the bed of the Klínový brook, whose two v's, encrypted in the name by the Valouch–Stibral studio team, refer to the main supporting element of the footbridge, the Vierendeel beam.

A footbridge made of wood or steel? The team of the St. Peter's Bridge studio Mádr is working on two material concepts, hence the plural in the title, in order to examine and choose the best solution. The second studio team proposes a footbridge over Friesova strouha, at the confluence with the Klínový brook near the Elephant waterfall, so modest that it will hardly be seen, simply Nelávka.

Part of the work on the project includes negotiations with suppliers, budget, organization of the entire construction process or promotion. You can follow the progress of each team on their instagram profiles:

Footbridge at Trkač, 210bpm
Footbridge over Pudlava, Hranolky
Footbridge over Friesova strouha, Nelávka
Footbridge over Boudecký brook, Kokrháč
Footbridge Klínovvka
St. Peter's footbridges

More about the design-build projects of the Department of Architectural Design II can be found on the website of the 1:1 lab platform.