Copenhagen is known for its bike-friendly culture, but the Copenhagen Gate project is going to take bike lanes to a whole new level – literally. Work is finally set to start on Steven Holl Architect’s project in Copenhagen, which will consist of two skyscrapers joined by a bike lane 213 feet in the air. The architect announced that construction could finally begin as early as 2016 and, once completed, the skyscrapers will act as a gate into the city with a bike lane and pedestrian bridge that will make the ones in your town look like child’s play.
The design was chosen as the winner in a competition to help revitalize Copenhagen’s skyline in 2008, but construction was put off because of economic issues. Even though construction hasn’t even started, the innovative design was selected for a Progressive Architecture Award in 2010. The towers are meant to act as a gateway into Copenhagen, with one building oriented towards the sea and one oriented towards the city, facing the city’s past and future.
Related: Steven Holl’s Stunning Solar Copenhagen Bridge
Between the two towers will be a bridge suspended 65 meters above the harbor. Each side of the bridge will support its end of the bridge, which will meet in between the buildings at an angle, “joining like a handshake over the harbor”. Each building will be curtained in solar screens and will feature wind turbines that will power the buildings’ entire lighting needs. So why the bridge up in the sky? The city has a law that no home can be built more than 500 meters away from public transport, and the bridge facilitates new homes in the skyscrapers to be within this range, while still placing the crossing high enough to allow ships to pass underneath.
+ Steven Holl Architects
Via Architenct and FastCo
