This “air bridge” will soon span the Garonne and link Toulouse to its “green lung”
By David Saint-Sernin
Published on
It’s a new gateway who will cross Garonne a Toulouse over a length of 145 meters and over a width of 5 meters. Located at the level of the Empalot district, it will make it possible to strengthen this district Ile du Ramier, the future green lung of the agglomeration. Dedicated only to pedestrians and cyclists, it will be the first of its kind in Toulouse.
In this month of September 2022, the construction site of this footbridge named “Empalot” started in the south of the city. A construction site clearly visible when you return to town by the tracks on the banks of the Garonne.
This project should last about 12 months. The result will be an “airy and light” footbridge. This is how it was presented last February.
A metallic structure
The rectilinear footbridge is of cable-stayed design with two pylons: it crosses the Garonne without support over a main span of 145 meters and a useful width of 5 metres. It is extended on each of the banks by two ramps and stairs. Here again, given the risk of flooding, the footbridge will be a metal structure while the supports and ramps will be in concrete. Its cost is 9.5 million euros excluding tax.
“Architecturally, we want something aesthetic that will fit well into the environment and will allow us to maintain unobstructed views of the city center in particular. The project will have to preserve biodiversity since we will identify ourselves in a sensitive environmental zone and have sustainable characteristics since we will identify ourselves in a flood-prone area”, explained a few months ago François Chollet, vice-president of Toulouse Métropole in charge of ecology and energy transition.
A pedestrian promenade
Between the footbridge and the Empalot district, a pedestrian promenade has been laid out along rue Mombiola.
“Rapas” footbridge on the left bank
This Empalot footbridge will not be the only one to connect the town to the island of Ramier by 2024. On the other side of the island, the “Rapas” footbridge will provide access to the sector of the old Parc des expositions, where you will find one of the largest esplanades in Toulouse, in the Fer à Cheval district, as well as the tramway on avenue de Muret and the cycle path network on the dyke.
Two other longer-term gateways
The creation of these two footbridges will be followed by the construction of two other footbridges in the years 2026-2032.
One will be built on the left bank, at Croix-de-Pierre: “it will have to take into account a recomposition of the sports equipment of the Daniel Faucher site, property of the State and in order to free up the companies necessary for the installation of access ramps to the structure, as well as the connection to the alleys of the Ile du Ramier”, explained Toulouse Métropole a few months ago.
Facilitate access to Central Park in Toulouse
The other will be built on the right bank of the Garonne. Dubbed the “Saint-Michel” footbridge, its construction will take place “after the prior release of the land currently occupied by the Ramier waste disposal center associated with the creation of a modern waste disposal and recycling center in hall 9”, Toulouse Métropole further underlined.
The construction of these four footbridges will make it easier for Toulouse residents to access the future large urban park on the Ile du Ramier, which will become the “green lung” of the Pink City.
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