KGPdesign studio

The densely wooded site, at a confluence between Rock Creek Park and the historic Georgetown Branch Line rail line, the paired bridge design seeks to mediate between two distinct regional bridge typologies. Bridge types typical of Rock Creek Park, a flat-arch type and monumental-arch type, were merged with an historic through-truss rail typology identical to the Georgetown Branch Line. The final design pairs an arch girder LRT bridge and inverted bowed truss bridge for pedestrians and bicycles. The composition elegantly spans the creek, juxtaposing the weight and formal qualities of the complimentary vernaculars of both respective corridors at this point of convergence. In planning, KGP optimized vertical and horizontal alignments of the LRT and pedestrian and bicycle bridge to minimize the impacts on the delicate wooded hillside and maximize the view corridor along the existing Rock Creek Trail path below.