santiago calatrava: bridges over troubled water

santiago calatrava: bridges over troubled water image courtesy of hélder cotrim

lately, spanish architect santiago calatrava has been having some issues with a few of his constructed bridges. last year, several tourists have injured themselves on his constitution bridge which crosses over venice’s grand canal. individuals were either tripping or falling down on stairs, causing then to have twisted ankles and other minor injuries. now, calatrava’s design for the trinity river bridge in dallas, texas, which has already faced controversy, is hitting another obstacle with the army corp of engineers who claim that the bridge design and structure would be unsafe for use during a possible 100-year flood. plans to re-do the bridge, which was originally set to be completed by mid-2010, are being pushed for a completion date as far as 2016.

arata isozaki’s walkway extension from calatrava’s zubizuri bridge in bilbao, spain image courtesy of happy pontist

recently, santiago calatrava has received 30 000€ in damages for a walkway designed by japanese architect arata isozaki, that was tacked onto the end of his zubizuri bridge in bilboa. the extension was constructed as a way of connecting the bridge to the isozaki towers — located nearby. calatrava saw this addition as an infringement of his intellectual property rights. therefore, he has decided to donate the money to la casa de misericordia — an initiative which is dedicated to caring for the elderly in residential care homes at san mamés, spain.

the constitution bridge built in venice, italy

the shallow steps on which tourists have tripped and fell during their walk image courtesy of elisabetta carattin

a model of the trinity river bridge in dallas, texas