In terms of the number of star architects involved, Abu Dhabi, the richest city in the world, can only be compared with neighboring Dubai. Even the economic crisis does not interfere too much with the implementation of ambitious plans: among the newest buildings is the Sheikh Zayed Bridge, built by Zaha Hadid.
This bridge is the third in the city. Like the first two, Makta and Mussafa, built in the 1960s and 1970s respectively, it links the mainland of the UAE with Abu Dhabi, an island in the Persian Gulf. The construction of the new bridge, according to the idea of the city authorities, is of decisive importance for the development of the region's roads.
The transport network is an important thing, but most likely not the main thing in this case. In contrast to the first two bridges, more than modest in appearance, the new Hadid structure is emphatically impressive.
The bridge is a structure in the form of two converging, then diverging "sinusoids", the ends of which abut the coast of the island and the mainland. The tops of the "arches" reach 60 m above the water level, and the roadbed is located at a height of 20 m: it is divided in two, and each half of the 4-lane width is suspended on the sides of the "sinusoids" according to the cantilever principle. The length of the bridge is 842 m. The bridge is effectively illuminated at night; the lighting project was developed by renowned designer Rogier van der Heide.
It is believed that when designing, Hadid was inspired by the silhouette of sand dunes, but the realized bridge looks more like a flock of giant grasshoppers sitting in a row one after another.
The new bridge bears the name of Sheikh Zayed, and this fact deserves special attention. Sheikh Zayed - the father of the current ruler of the UAE - was an exceptional personality: he united the country, became its first president and held this post for 38 years. In addition, Sheikh Zayed was also interested in architecture. However, only on this basis the name of Zayd would not have been given to the bridge. To name the building in honor of the ruler is a special honor in the East, a kind of the highest recognition of its merits, from which we can conclude that the Zaha Hadid Bridge is now considered as part of the official architectural "paradigm" of Abu Dhabi.
