Herzog & de Meuron designed a new bridge over Douro River to join Porto to Vila Nova da Gaia for a contest in 2021, which today claims its place between the iconic Ponte da Arrábida – by Edgar Cardoso, built in reinforced concrete in 1963 – and the Dom Luís I iron bridge – designed by Belgian engineer Théophile Seyrigche, inaugurated in 1886 and now UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Between these great historical bridges and several significant architectural works, the studio opted for an abstract form, which stood out from all the rest and cut the landscape reflecting the water of the river and the sky. Supported by huge black beams, the “570 Bridge” appears as a reinforced concrete volume covered with a silver surface, which offers different perceptions of the city and invites people not only to cross it to move from one side of the river to the other, but also to inhabit it as a real urban space, in close relationship with the FAUP, the famous Faculty of Architecture of the city.

The bridge structure, in fact, can accommodate various functions and be organized in various ways and in different areas, providing both Porto and Vila Nova da Gaia with new possibilities and activities for the community and tourists. The ambition is to express the image of a new city and to embody the way people today move and use public space.